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THE    COMEDY   OF  HUMAN  LIFE 
By   H.  DE   BALZAC 


SCENES    FROM   POLITICAL   LIFE 


THE 

BROTHERHOOD    OF    CONSOLATION 

(THE    OTHER    SIDE    OF 
CONTEMPORANEOUS    HISTORY) 


BALZAC'S     NOVELS, 

Translated  by  Miss  K.  P.  Wormeley. 


Already  Published: 
PERE     GORIOT. 
DUCHESSE     DE     LANGEAIS. 
RISE  AND  FALL  OF  CESAR  BIROTTEAU. 
EUGENIE     GRANDET. 
COUSIN     PONS. 
THE     COUNTRY     DOCTOR. 
THE     TW^O     BROTHERS. 
THE    ALKAHEST. 
MODESTE     MIGNON. 
THE   MAGIC    SKIN  (Peau  de  Chagrin). 
COUSIN     BETTE. 
LOUIS     LAMBERT. 
BUREAUCRACY  (Les  Employes). 
SERAPHITA. 
SONS    OF    THE     SOIL. 
FAME    AND    SORROW. 
THE    LILY    OF    THE    VALLEY. 
URSULA. 

AN   HISTORICAL    MYSTERY. 
ALBERT    SAVARUS. 
BALZAC  :    A   MEMOIR. 
PIERRETTE. 
THE    CHOUANS. 
LOST    ILLUSIONS. 
A  GREAT   MAN   OF    THE    PROVINCES  IN 

PARIS. 
THE  BROTHERHOOD  OF  CONSOLATION. 
• 

ROBERTS    BROTHERS,    Publishers,    ■ 
BOSTON. 


HONORH    DE    BALZAC 

TR>  Nfat-ATiiD  ■  BY  '       '  ' 

KATHARINZ    PPtSCOTT    WphMELE^,'   i   ;\ 


The  Brotherhood  of 
Consolation 


ROBERTS     BROTHERS 


3     SOMERSET     STREET 


BOSTON 
1893 


GIFT  OF 


Copyright,  1893, 

By  Roberts  Brothers. 

All  rights  reserved. 


CIntbcrsttg  ^xtss'. 
John  Wilson  and  Son,  Cambridge,  U.S.A. 


CONTENTS. 


jFi'rst  ISpisotie. 

MADAME   DE  LA  CHANTERIE. 

PAGE 

I.     The  Malady  of  the  Age 1 

11.     Old  House,  old  People,  old  Customs  .     .  13 

III.  The  House  of  Mongenod 26 

IV.  Farewell  to  the  Life  of  the  World     .  37 

V.     The  Influence  of  a  Book        51 

VI.     The  Business  of  the  House  of  Chanterie 

and  Company 59 

VII.     Monsieur  Alain  Tells  His  Secrets     .     .  70 

VHI.     Who  She  was  — AVife  and  Mother       .     .  107 

IX.     The  Legal  Statement 131 

X.     Pray   for    those    who    despitefully   use 

YOU  and  persecute  you 154 

SBConti  lEpfsotie. 

THE    INITIATE. 

XT.     The  Police  of  the  Good  God      ....  175 

XIL     A  Case  to  Investigate 189 

XIII.    Further  Investigations 213 


y*^ 


796231 


vi  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

PAGE 

XIV.     How  THE  Poor  and  Helpless  are  Preyed 

UPON 228 

XV.     An  Evening  with  Vanda 249 

XVT.     A  Lesson  in  Charity 272 

XVII.     Halpersohn 286 

XVIII.     Who  Monsieur  Bernard  was    ....  299 

XIX.     Vengeance 313 


^    I       '    ■»   ■>        '  >    ■•     •> 

THE 

BROTHERHOOD   OF  CONSOLATION. 


FIRST   EPISODE. 
MADAME   DE   LA   CHANTERIE. 


I. 

THE    MALADY    OF   THE    AGE. 

On  a  fine  evening  in  the  month  of  September,  1836, 
a  man  about  thirty  years  of  age  was  leaning  on  the 
parapet  of  that  qua}^  from  which  a  spectator  can  look 
np  the  Seine  from  the  Jardin  des  Plantes  to  Notre- 
Dame,  and  down,  along  the  vast  perspective  of  the 
river,  to  the  Louvre.  There  is  not  another  point  of 
view  to  compare  with  it  in  the  capital  of  ideas.  We 
feel  ourselves  on  the  quarter-deck,  as  it  were,  of  a 
gigantic  vessel.  We  dream  of  Paris  from  the  days 
of  the  Romans  to  those  of  the  Franks,  from  the 
Normans  to  the  Burgundians,  the  Middle-Ages,  the 
Valois,  Henri  IV.,  Louis  XIV.,  Napoleon,  and  Louis- 
Philippe.     Vestiges  are  before   us  of  all  those   sover- 

1 


1  "   '  * /* 


2  TA^;  l^rhih&rhti'od  of  Consolation. 

eignties,  in  monutaentS'  that  recall  their  memory.  The 
cupola  of  Sainte-Genevieve  towers  above  the  Latin 
quarter.  Behind  us  rises  the  noble  apsis  of  the 
cathedral.  The  Hotel  de  Ville  tells  of  revolutions ; 
the  Hotel-Dieu,  of  the  miseries  of  Paris.  After  gazing 
at  the  splendors  of  the  Louvre  we  can,  by  taking  two 
steps,  look  down  upon  the  rags  and  tatters  of  that 
ignoble  nest  of  houses  huddling  between  the  quai  de  la 
Tournelle  and  the  Hotel-Dieu,  —  a  foul  spot,  which  a 
modern  municipality  is  endeavoring  at  the  present 
moment  to  remove. 

In  1835  this  marvellous  scene  presented  still  another 
lesson  to  the  eye  :  between  the  Parisian  leaning  on  the 
parapet  and  the  cathedral  lay  the  "  Terrain  "  (such  was 
the  ancient  name  of  that  barren  spot),  still  strewn  with 
the  ruins  of  the  Archiepiscopal  Palace.  When  we 
contemplate  from  that  quay  so  many  commemorating 
scenes,  when  the  soul  has  grasped  the  past  as  it  does 
the  present  of  this  cit}^  of  Paris,  then  indeed  Religion 
seems  to  have  alighted  there  as  if  to  spread  her  hands 
above  the  sorrows  of  both  banks  and  extend  her  arms 
fi-om  the  faubourg  Saint-Antoine  to  the  faubourg  Saint- 
Marceau.  Let  us  hope  that  this  sublime  unity  ma}^  be 
completed  by  the  erection  of  an  episcopal  palace  of  the 
Gothic  order ;  which  shall  replace  the  formless  build- 
ings now  standing  between  the  "  Terrain,"  the  rue 
d'Arcole,  the  cathedral,  and  the  quai  de  la  Cite. 


The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation.  3 

This  spot,  the  heart  of  ancient  Paris,  is  the  loneliest 
and  most  melanchol}'  of  regions.  The  waters  of  the 
Seine  break  there  noisil}',  the  cathedral  casts  its 
shadows  at  the  setting  of  the  sun.  We  can  easily 
believe  that  serious  thoughts  must  have  filled  the  mind 
of  a  man  afflicted  with  a  moral  malady  as  he  leaned 
upon  that  parapet.  Attracted  perhaps  b}'  the  liarmony 
between  his  thoughts  at  the  moment  and  those  to 
which  these  divers  scenes  gave  birth,  he  rested  his 
hands  upon  the  coping  and  gave  way  to  a  double  con- 
templation,—  of  Paris,  and  of  himself !  The  shadows 
deepened,  the  lights  shone  out  afar,  but  still  he  did 
not  move,  carried  along  as  he  was  on  the  current  of  a 
meditation,  such  as  comes  to  many  of  us,  big  with  the 
future  and  rendered  solemn  by  the  past. 

After  a  while  he  heard  two  persons  coming  towards 
him,  whose  voices   had   caught  his   attention   on   the 

A 

bridge  which  joins  the  He  de  la  Cite  with  the  quai  de 
la  Tournelle.  These  persons  no  doubt  thought  them- 
selves alone,  and  therefore  spoke  louder  than  they  would 
have  done  in  more  frequented  places.  The  voices  be- 
trayed a  discussion  which  apparently,  from  the  few 
words  that  reached  the  ear  of  the  involuntary  listener, 
related  to  a  loan  of  money.  Just  as  the  pair  approached 
the  quay,  one  of  them,  dressed  like  a  working  man,  left 
the  other  with  a  despairing  gesture.  The  other  stopped 
and  called  after  him,  saying  :  — 


4  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"  You  have  not  a  sou  to  p^y  3'our  way  across  the 
bridge.  Take  this,"  he  added,  giving  the  man  a 
piece  of  money  ;  "  and  remember,  m}'  friend,  that  God 
himself  is  spealving  to  us  when  a  good  thought  comes 
into  our  hearts." 

This  last  remark  made  the  dreamer  at  the  parapet 
quiver.  The  man  who  made  it  little  knew  that,  to  use 
a  proverbial  expression,  he  was  killing  two  birds  with 
one  stone,  addressing  two  miseries, — a  working  life 
brought  to  despair,  a  suffering  soul  without  a  compass, 
the  victim  of  what  Panurge's  sheep  call  progress,  and 
what,  in  France,  is  called  equalit\\  The  words,  simple 
in  themselves,  became  sublime  from  the  tone  of  him 
who  said  them,  in  a  voice  that  possessed  a  spell.  Are 
there  not,  in  fact,  some  calm  and  tender  voices  that 
produce  upon  us  the  same  effect  as  a  far  horizon 
outlook  ? 

B}'  his  dress  the  dreamer  knew  him  to  be  a  priest, 
and  he  saw  b}'  the  last  gleams  of  the  fading  twilight  a 
white,  august,  worn  face.  The  sight  of  a  priest  issuing 
from  the  beautiful  cathedral  of  Saint-Etlenne  in  Vienna, 
bearing  the  Extreme  Unction  to  a  dying  person,  deter- 
mined the  celebrated  tragic  author  Werner  to  become  a 
Catholic.  Almost  the  same  effect  was  produced  upon 
the  dreamer  when  he  looked  upon  the  man  who  had, 
nil  unknowing,  given  him  comfort ;  on  the  threatening 
horizon  of  his   future  he  saw  a  luminous  space  where 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  5 

shone  the  blue  of  ether,  and  he  followed  that  light  as 
the  shepherds  of  the  Gospel  followed  the  voices  that 
cried  to  them :   "  Christ,  the  Lord,  is  born  this  day." 

The  man  who  had  said  the  beneficent  words  passed 
on  by  the  wall  of  the  cathedral,  taking,  as  a  result  of 
chance,  which  often  leads  to  great  results,  the  direction 
of  the  street  from  which  the  dreamer  came,  and  to 
which  he  was  now  returning,  led  by  the  faults  of  his 
life. 

This  dreamer  was  named  Godefroid.  Whoever  reads 
this  histor}'  w^ill  understand  the  reasons  which  lead  the 
writer  to  use  the  Christian  names  only  of  some  who  are 
mentioned  in  it.  The  motives  which  led  Godefroid, 
who  lived  in  the  quarter  of  the  Chaussee-d'Antin,  to 
the  neighborhood  of  Notre-Dame  at  such  an  hour  were 
as  follows  :  — 

The  son  of  a  retail  shopkeeper,  whose  economy  en- 
abled him  to  la}'  by  a  sort  of  fortune,  he  was  the  sole 
object  of  ambition  to  his  father  and  mother,  who 
dreamed  of  seeing  him  a  notary  in  Paris.  For  this 
reason,  at  the  early  age  of  seven,  he  was  sent  to  an 
institution,  that  of  the  Abbe  Liautard,  to  be  thrown 
among  children  of  distinguished  families  who,  during 
the  Empire,  chose  this  school  for  the  education  of  their 
sons  in  preference  to  the  h'ceums,  where  religion  was 
too  much  overlooked.  Social  inequalities  were  not 
noticeable  among  schoolmates;  but  in  1821,  his  stud- 


6  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

ies  being  ended,  Godefroid,  who  was  then  with  a  notar}', 
became  aware  of  the  distance  that  separated  him  from 
those  with  whom  he  had  hitherto  lived  on  familiar 
terms. 

Obliged  to  go  through  the  law  school,  he  there  found 
himself  among  a  crowd  of  the  sons  of  the  bourgeoisie, 
who,  without  fortunes  to  inherit  or  hereditary  distinc- 
tions, could  look  only  to  their  own  personal  merits  or  to 
persistent  toil.  The  hopes  that  his  father  and  mother, 
then  retired  from  business,  placed  upon  him  stimulated 
the  youth's  vanity  without  exciting  his  pride.  His 
parents  lived  simply,  like  the  thrifty  Dutch,  spending 
only  one  fourth  of  an  income  of  twelve  thousand  francs. 
They  intended  their  savings,  together  with  half  their 
capital,  for  the  purchase  of  a  notary's  practice  for  their 
son.  Subjected  to  the  rule  of  this  domestic  econom^^, 
Godefroid  found  his  immediate  state  so  disproportioned 
to  the  visions  of  himself  and  his  parents,  that  he  grew 
discouraged.  In  some  feeble  natures  discouragement 
turns  to  env}" ;  others,  in  whom  necessity,  will,  reflec- 
tion, stand  in  place  of  talent,  march  straight  and  reso- 
lutely in  the  path  traced  out  for  bourgeois  ambitions. 
Godefroid,  on  the  contrar3',  revolted,  wished  to  shine, 
tried  several  briUiant  wa3's,  and  blinded  his  eyes,  lie 
endeavored  to  succeed ;  but  all  his  efforts  ended  in 
proving  the  fact  of  his  own  impotence.  Admitting  at 
last   the    inequality  that  existed   between   his  desires 


Tlte  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  7 

find  his  capacities,  he  began  to  hate  all  social  su- 
premacies, became  a  Liberal,  and  attempted  to  reach 
celebrit}"  by  writing  a  book  ;  but  he  learned,  to  his  cost, 
to  regard  talent  as  he  did  nobilit}'.  Having  tried  the 
law,  the  notariat,  and  literature,  without  distinguish- 
ing himself  in  an}'  way,  his  mind  now  turned  to  tlie 
magistrac}'. 

About  this  time  his  father  died.  His  mother,  who 
contented  herself  in  her  old  age  with  two  thousand 
francs  a  year,  gave  the  rest  of  the  fortune  to  Gode- 
froid.  Thus  possessed,  at  the  age  of  twent3'-five,  often 
thousand  francs  a  year,  he  felt  himself  rich  ;  and  lie 
was  so,  relatively  to  the  past.  Until  then  his  life  had 
been  spent  on  acts  without  will,  on  wishes  that  were 
impotent ;  now,  to  advance  with  the  age,  to  act,  to  pla}'' 
a  part,  he  resolved  to  enter  some  career  or  find  some 
connection  that  should  further  his  fortunes.  He  first 
thought  of  journalism,  which  always  opens  its  arms  to 
any  capital  that  may  come  in  its  w^a}'.  To  be  the  owner 
of  a  newspaper  is  to  become  a  personage  at  once  ;  such 
a  man  works  intellect,  and  has  all  the  gratifications  of 
it  and  none  of  the  labor.  Nothing  is  more  tempting  to 
inferior  minds  than  to  be  able  to  rise  in  this  wa}'  on  the 
talents  of  others.  Paris  has  seen  two  or  three  parvenus 
of  this  kind,  —  men  whose  success  is  a  disgrace,  both 
to  the  epoch  and  to  those  who  have  lent  them  their 
shoulders. 


8  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

In  this  sphere  Godefroid  was  soon  outdone  b}'  the 
brutal  machiavelianism  of  some,  or  b}'  the  lavish  prodi- 
galit}"  of  others  ;  b}-  the  fortunes  of  ambitious  capitalists, 
or  by  the  wit  and  shrewdness  of  editors.  Meantime  he 
was  drawn  into  all  the  dissipations  that  arise  from  lit- 
erary or  political  life,  and  he  yielded  to  the  temptations 
incurred  b}^  journalists  behind  the  scenes.  He  soon 
found  himself  in  bad  company ;  but  this  experience 
taught  him  that  his  appearance  was  insignificant, 
that  he  had  one  shoulder  higher  than  the  other,  with- 
out the  inequality  being  redeemed  b}'  either  malignancy 
or  kindness  of  nature.  Such  were  the  truths  these 
artists  made  him  feel. 

Small,  ill-made,  without  superiorit}'  of  mind  or  set- 
tled purpose,  what  chance  was  there  for  a  man  like  this 
in  an  age  when  success  in  any  career  demands  that 
the  highest  qualities  of  the  mind  be  furthered  by  luck, 
or  by  tenacity  of  will  which  commands  luck. 

The  revolution  of  1830  stanched  Godefroid's  wounds. 
He  had  the  courage  of  hope,  which  is  equal  to  that  of 
despair.  He  obtained  an  appointment,  like  other  ob- 
scure journalists,  to  a  government  situation  in  the 
provinces,  where  his  liberal  ideas,  conflicting  with  the 
necessities  of  the  new  power,  made  him  a  troublesome 
instrument.  Bitten  with  liberalism,  he  did  not  know, 
as  cleverer  men  did,  how  to  steer  a  course.  Obedience 
to  ministers  he  regarded   as  sacrificing  his  opinions. 


The  Brotlierhood  of  Consolation.  9 

Besides,  the  governraeilt  seemed  to  him  to  be  disobe}'- 
ing  the  laws  of  its  own  origin.  Godefroid  declared  for 
progress,  when  the  object  of  the  government  was  to 
maintain  the  statu  quo.  He  returned  to  Paris  almost 
poor,  but  faithful  still  to  the  doctrines  of  the  Opposition. 

Alarmed  by  the  excesses  of  the  press,  more  alarmed 
still  by  the  attempted  outrages  of  the  republican  part}-, 
he  sought  in  retirement  from  the  world  the  onl}-  life 
suitable  for  a  being  whose  fticulties  were  incomplete, 
and  without  sufficient  force  to  bear  up  against  the 
rough  jostling  of  political  life,  the  struggles  and  suf- 
ferings of  which  confer  no  credit,  —  a  being,  too,  who 
was  wearied  with  his  man}^  miscarriages ;  without 
friends,  for  friendship  demands  either  striking  merits 
or  striking  defects,  and  yet  possessing  a  sensibilitj'  of 
soul  more  dreamy  than  profound.  Surely  a  retired  life 
was  the  course  left  for  a  young  man  whom  pleasure 
had  more  than  once  misled,  —  whose  heart  was  alread}^ 
aged  b}^  contact  with  a  world  as  restless  as  it  was 
disappointing. 

His  mother,  who  was  dying  in  the  peaceful  village  of 
Auteuil,  recalled  her  son  to  live  w^ith  her,  partly  to 
have  him  near  her,  and  partly  to  put  him  in  the  wa}' 
of  finding  an  equable,  tranquil  happiness  which  might 
satisf}'  a  soul  like  his.  She  had  ended  by  judging 
Godefroid,  finding  him  at  twenty-eight  with  two  thirds 
of  his  fortune  gone,  his  desires  dulled,  his  pretended 


10  TJw  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

capacities  extinct,  his  activity  dead,  his  ambition 
humbled,  and  his  hatred  against  all  that  reached  legi- 
timate success  increased  b}'  his  own  shortcomings. 

She  tried  to  marry  him  to  an  excellent  3'oung  girl, 
the  only  daughter  of  a  retired  merchant,  —  a  woman 
well  fitted  to  play  the  part  of  guardian  to  the  sickened 
soul  of  her  son.  But  the  father  had  the  business  spirit 
which  never  abandons  an  old  merchant,  especialh'  in 
matrimonial  negotiations,  and  after  a  year  of  atten- 
tions and  neighborly  intercourse,  Godefroid  was  not 
accepted.  In  the  first  place,  his  former  career  seemed 
to  these  worth}'  people  profoundly-  immoral ;  then,  dur- 
ing this  very  3-ear,  he  had  made  still  further  inroads 
into  his  capital,  as  much"  to  dazzle  the  parents  as  to 
please  the  daughter.  This  vanit}",  excusable  as  it 
w^as,  caused  his  final  rejection  by  the  familj-,  who 
held  dissipation  of  property  in  holy  horror,  and  wiio 
now  discovered  that  in  six  3'ears  Godefroid  had 
spent  or  lost  a  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  francs  of 
his  capital. 

This  blow  struck  the  j'oung  man's  alread}'  wounded 
heart  the  more  deepl}-  because  the  girl  herself  had  no 
personal  beauty.  But,  guided  by  his  mother  in  judg- 
ing her  character,  he  had  ended  b}'  recognizing  in  the 
woman  he  sought  the  great  value  of  an  earnest  soul, 
and  the  vast  advantages  of  a  sound  mind.  He  had 
grown  accustomed   to  the   face ;    he  had  studied   the 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  11 

countenance ;  he  loved  the  voice,  the  manners,  the 
glance  of  that  joung  girl.  Having  cast  on  this  attach- 
ment the  last  stake  of  his  life,  the  disappointment  he 
endured  was  the  bitterest  of  all.  His  mother  died,  and 
he  found  himself,  he  who  had  alwa3's  desired  luxury, 
with  five  thousand  francs  a  3'ear  for  his  whole  fortune, 
and  with  the  certainty  that  never  in  his  future  life  could 
he  repair  any  loss  whatsoever ;  for  he  felt  himself  in- 
capable of  the  effort  expressed  in  that  terrible  injunc- 
tion, to  make  his  way. 

Weak,  impatient  grief  cannot  be  easil}'  shaken  off. 
During  his  mourning,  Godefroid  tried  the  various 
chances  and  distractions  of  Paris ;  he  dined  at  table- 
d'hotes  ;  he  made  acquaintances  heedlesslj' ;  he  sought 
society,  with  no  result  but  that  of  increasing  his  ex- 
penditures. Walking  along  the  boulevards,  he  often 
suffered  deepl}'  at  the  sight  of  a  mother  walking  with 
a  marriageable  daughter,  —  a  sight  which  caused  him 
as  painful  an  emotion  as  he  formerl}"  felt  when  a  3*oung 
man  passed  him  riding  to  the  Bois,  or  driving  in  an 
elegant  equipage.  The  sense  of  his  impotence  told  him 
that  he  could  never  hope  for  the  best  of  even  secondary 
positions,  nor  for  an}'  easily  won  career;  and  he  had 
heart  enough  to  feel  constantly  wounded,  mind  enough 
to  make  in  his  own  breast  the  bitterest  of  elegies. 

Unfitted  to  struggle  against  circumstances,  having 
an  inward  consciousness  of  superior  faculties  without 


12  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

the  will  that  could  put  them  in  action,  feeling  himself 
incomplete,  without  force  to  undertake  any  great  thing, 
without  resistance  against  the  tastes  derived  from  his 
earlier  life,  his  education,  and  his  indolence,  he  was 
the  victim  of  three  maladies,  an}"  one  of  which  would 
he  enough  to  sicken  of  life  a  young  man  long  alienated 
from  religious  faith. 

Thus  it  was  that  Godefroid  presented,  even  to  the 
eye,  the  face  that  we  meet  so  often  in  Paris  that  it 
might  be  called  the  type  of  a  Parisian ;  in  it  we  may 
see  ambitions  deceived  or  dead,  inward  wretchedness, 
hatred  sleeping  in  the  indolence  of  a  life  passed  in 
watching  the  daily  and  external  life  of  Paris,  apathy 
which  seeks  stimulation,  lament  without  talent,  a  mira- 
icr}'  of  strength,  the  venom  of  past  disappointments 
which  excites  to  C3micism,  and  spits  upon  all  that  en- 
larges and  grows,  misconceives  all  necessary  authorit}^, 
rejoicing  in  its  embarrassments,  and  will  not  hold  to  an}'' 
social  form.  This  Parisian  malady  is  to  the  active  and 
permanent  impulse  towards  conspiracy  in  persons  of 
energ}"  what  the  sapwood  is  to  the  sap  of  the  trees  it 
preserves  it,  feeds  it,  and  conceals  it. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  13 


II. 


OLD  HOUSE,  OLD  PEOPLE,  OLD  CUSTOMS. 

Weary  of  himself,  Goclefroid  attempted  one  day  to 
give  a  meaning  to  his  life,  after  meeting  a  former  com- 
rade who  had  been  the  tortoise  in  the  fable,  while  he  in 
earlier  da3's  had  been  the  hare.  In  one  of  those  con- 
versations whicli  arise  when  schoolmates  meet  again  in 
after  years,  —  a  conversation  held  as  they  were  walk- 
ing together  in  the  sunshine  on  the  boulevard  des 
Italiens,  ^ — he  was  startled  to  learn  the  success  of  a 
man  endowed  apparently  with  less  gifts,  less  means, 
less  fortune  than  himself;  but  who  had  bent  his  will 
each  morning  to  the  purpose  resolved  upon  the  night 
before.  The  sick  soul  then  determined  to  imitate  that 
simple  action. 

"  Social  existence  is  like  the  soil,"  his  comrade  had 
said  to  him;  "it  makes  us  a  return  in  proportion  to 
our  efforts." 

Godefroid  was  in  debt.  As  a  first  test,  a  first  task, 
he  resolved  to  live  in  some  retired  place,  and  pa}'  his 
debts  from  his  income.  To  a  man  accustomed  to  spend 
six  thousand  francs  when  he  had  but  five,  it  was  no 


14  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

small  iindertakins:  to  brins:  himself  to  live  on  two 
thousand.  Every  morning  he  studied  advertisements, 
hoping  to  find  the  offer  of  some  asylum  where  his 
expenses  could  be  fixed,  where  he  might  have  the 
solitude  a  man  wants  when  he  makes  a  return  upon 
himself,  examines  himself,  and  endeavors  to  give  him- 
self a  vocation.  The  manners  and  customs  of  bour- 
geois boarding-houses  shocked  his  delicac}^  sanitariums 
seemed  to  him  unhealthy,  and  he  was  about  to  fall  back 
into  the  fatal  irresolution  of  persons  without  will,  when 
the  following  advertisement  met  his  eye  :  — 

"  To  Let.  A  small  lodging  for  seventy  francs  a  month; 
suitable  for  an  ecclesiastic.  A  quiet  tenant  desired.  Board 
supplied;  the  rooms  can  be  furnished  at  a  moderate  cost 
if  mutually  acceptable. 

"Inquire  of  M.  Millet,  grocer,  rue  Chanoinesse,  near 
Notre-Dame,  where  all  further  information  can  be  ob- 
tained." 

Attracted  by  a  certain  kindliness  concealed  beneath 
these  words,  and  the  middle-class  air  which  exhaled 
from  them,  Godefroid  had,  on  the  afternoon  when  we 
found  him  on  the  quay,  called  at  four  o'clock  on  the 
grocer,  who  told  him  that  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  was 
then  dining,  and  did  not  receive  any  one  when  at  her 
meals.  Tlie  lady,  he  said,  was  visible  in  the  evening 
after  seven  o'clock,  or  in  the  morning  between  ten  and 
twelve.     While   speaking.   Monsieur  Millet  examined 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  15 

Godefroid,  and  made  him  submit  to  what  magistrates 
call  the  "  first  degree  oC  interrogation." 

"Was  monsieur  unmarried?  Madame  wished  a 
person  of  regular  habits  ;  the  gate  was  closed  at  eleven 
at  the  latest.  Monsieur  certainly  seemed  of  an  age  to 
suit  Madame  de  la  Chanterie." 

"  How  old  do  3'ou  think  me?"  asked  Godefroid. 

"  About  forty  ! "  replied  the  grocer. 

This  ingenuous  answer  threw  the  j'oung  man  into  a 
state  of  misanthropic  gloom.  He  went  off  and  dined 
at  a  restaurant  on  the  quai  de  la  Tournelle,  and  after- 
wards went  to  the  parapet  to  contemplate  Notre-Darae 
at  the  moment  when  the  fires  of  the  setting  sun  were 
rippling  and  breaking  about  the  manifold  buttresses  of 
the  apsis. 

The  young  man  was  floating  between  the  promptings 
of  despair  and  the  moving  voice  of  religious  harmonies 
sounding  in  the  bell  of  the  cathedral  when,  amid  the 
shadows,  the  silence,  the  half-veiled  light  of  the  moon, 
he  heard  the  words  of  the  priest  Though,  like  most 
of  the  sons  of  our  century,  he  was  far  from  religious, 
his  sensibilities  were  touched  by  those  words,  and  he 
returned  to  the  rue  Chanoinesse,  although  he  had  al- 
most made  up  his  mind  not  to  do  so. 

The  priest  and  Godefroid  were  both  surprised  when 
they  entered  together  the  rue  Massillon,  which  is  oppo- 
site to  the  small  north  portal  of  the  cathedral,   and 


16  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

turned  together  into  the  rue  Chanoinesse,  at  the  point 
where,  towards  the  rue  de  la  Colombe,  it  becomes  the 
rue  des  Marmousets.  When  Godefroid  stopped  before 
the  arched  portal  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  house, 
the  priest  turned  towards  him  and  examined  him  by  tlie 
light  of  the  hanging  street-lamp,  probablj'  one  of  the 
last  to  disappear  from  the  heart  of  old  Paris. 

"Have  3'ou  come  to  see  Madame  de  la  Chanterie, 
monsieur?"  said  the  priest. 

"  Yes,"  replied  Godefroid.  "The  words  I  heard  3'ou 
sa}'  to  that  workman  show  me  that,  if  you  live  here, 
this  house  must  be  salutary  for  the  soul." 

"Then  you  were  a  witness  of  m}-  defeat,"  said  the 
priest,  raising  the  knocker  of  the  door,  "  for  I  did  not 
succeed." 

"  I  thought,  on  the  contrary,  it  was  the  workman  who 
did  not  succeed ;  he  demanded  mone}'  energetical!}'." 

"  Alas  !  "  replied  the  priest,  "  one  of  the  great  evils 
of  revolutions  in  France  is  that  each  offers  a  fresh  pre- 
mium to  the  ambitions  of  the  lower  classes.  To  get  out 
of  his  condition,  to  make  his  fortune  (which  is  regarded 
to-da}'  as  the  onl}-  social  standard\,  the  working-man 
throws  himself  into  some  of  those  monstrous  associa- 
tions which,  if  the}'  do  not  succeed,  ought  to  bring  the 
speculators  to  account  before  human  justice.  This  is 
what  trusts  often  lead  to." 

The  porter  opened  a  heavy  door.    The  priest  said  to 


The  Brotherhood  of  Coyisolation.  17 

Godefroid  :    "Monsieur  has  perhaps  come  about  the 
Httle  suite  of  rooms?" 

"  Yes,  monsieur." 

The  priest  and  Godefroid  then  crossed  a  wide  court- 
3'ard,  at  the  farther  end  of  which  loomed  darkly  a  tall 
house  flanked  by  a  square  tower  which  rose  above  the 
roof,  and  appeared  to  be  in  a  dilapidated  condition. 
Whoever  knows  the  history  of  Paris,  knows  that  the  soil 
before  and  around  the  cathedral  has  been  so  raised  that 
there  is  not  a  vestige  now  of  the  twelve  steps  which 
formerl}''  led  up  to  it.  To-da}'  the  base  of  the  columns 
of  the  porch  is  on  a  level  with  the  pavement ;  conse- 
quentl}'  what  was  once  the  ground-floor  of  the  house 
of  which  we  speak  is  now  its  cellar.  A  portico,  reached 
by  a  few  steps,  leads  to  the  entrance  of  the  tower,  in 
which  a  spiral  stairway  winds  up  round  a  central  shaft 
carved  with  a  grape-vine.  This  style,  which  recalls  the 
stairwaj'S  of  Louis  XII.  at  the  chateau  of  Blois,  dates 
from  the  fourteenth  centur3\  Struck  b\"  these  and 
other  evidences  of  antiquitv,  Godefroid  could  not  help 
saying,  with  a  smile,  to  the  priest :  "  This  tower  is  not 
of  yesterda}-." 

"  It  sustained,  they  say,  an  assault  of  the  Normans, 
and  probabl}'  formed  part  of  the  first  palace  of  the 
kings  of  Paris;  but,  according  to  actual  tradition,  it 
was  certaiuh'  the  dwelling  of  the  famous  Canon  Fulbert, 
the  uncle  of  Heloise." 

2 


18  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

As  he  ended  these  words,  the  priest  opened  the  door 
of  the  apartment  which  appeared  now  to  be  the  ground- 
floor  of  the  house,  but  was  in  reality  towards  both  the 
front  and  back  courtyard  (for  there  was  a  small  interior 
court)  on  the  first  floor. 

In  the  antechamber  a  maid-servant,  wearing  a  cam- 
bric cap  with  fluted  frills  for  its  sole  decoration,  was 
knitting  by  the  light  of  a  little  lamp.  She  stuck  her 
needles  into  her  hair,  held  her  work  in  her  hand,  and 
rose  to  open  the  door  of  a  salon  which  looked  out  on 
the  inner  court.  The  dress  of  the  woman  was  some- 
what like  that  of  the  Sisters  of  Mercy. 

*' Madame,  I  bring  you  a  tenant,"  said  the  priest, 
ushering  Godefroid  into  the  salon,  where  the  latter  saw 
three  persons  sitting  in  armchairs  near  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie. 

These  three  persons  rose ;  the  mistress  of  the  house 
rose  ;  then,  when  the  priest  had  drawn  up  another  arm- 
chair for  Godefroid,  and  when  the  future  tenant  had 
seated  himself  in  obedience  to  a  gesture  of  Madame  de 
la  Chanterie,  accompanied  b}'  the  old-fashioned  words, 
"Be  seated,  monsieur,"  the  man  of  the  boulevards 
fancied  himself  at  some  enormous  distance  from  Paris, 
—  in  lower  Brittany  or  the  wilds  of  Canada. 

Silence  has  perhaps  its  own  degrees.  Godefroid, 
already  penetrated  with  the  silence  of  the  rues  Massillon 
and  Chanoinesse,  where  two  carriages  do  not  pass  in 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  19 

a  month,  and  grasped  by  the  silence  of  the  courtyard 
and  the  tower,  may  have  felt  that  he  had  reached  the 
very  heart  of  silence  in  this  still  salon,  guarded  b\'  so 
many  old  streets,  old  courts,  old  walls. 

This  part  of  the  lie,  which  is  called  "the  Cloister," 
has  preserved  the  character  of  all  cloisters  ;  it  is  damp, 
cold,  and  monastically  silent  even  at  the  noisiest  hours 
of  the  da3\  It  will  be  remarked,  also,  that  this  portion 
of  the  Cite,  crowded  between  the  flank  of  Notre-Dame 
and  the  river,  faces  the  north,  and  is  always  in  the 
shadow  of  the  cathedral.  The  east  winds  swirl  through 
it  unopposed,  and  the  fogs  of  the  Seine  are  caught  and 
retained  by  the  black  walls  of  the  old  metropolitan 
church.  No  one  will  therefore  be  surprised  at  the  sen- 
sations Godefroid  felt  when  he  found  himself  in  this 
old  dwelling,  in  presence  of  four  silent  human  beings, 
who  seemed  as  solemn  as  the  things  which  surrounded 
them. 

He  did  not  look  about  him,  being  seized  with  curi- 
osit}^  as  to  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  whose  name  was 
already  a  puzzle  to  him.  This  lady  was  evidentl}'  fil 
l)erson  of  another  epoch,  not  to  sa}'  of  another  world. 
Her  face  was  placid,  its  tones  both  soft  and  cold ;  the 
nose  aquiline  ;  the  forehead  full  of  sweetness  ;  the  eyes 
brown  ;  the  chin  double  ;  and  all  were  framed  in  sil- 
very white  hair.  Her  gown  could  onl}^  be  called  by 
its  ancient  name  of  "  fourreau,"   so  tightly  was   she 


20  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

sheathed  within  it,  after  the  fashion  of  the  eighteenth 
centuiy.  The  material — a  brown  silk,  with  verj^  line 
and  multiplied  green  lines  —  seemed  also  of  that  pe- 
riod. The  bodice,  which  was  one  with  the  skirt,  was 
partly  hidden  beneath  a  mantle  of  pouU-de-soie  edged 
with  black  lace,  and  fastened  on  the  bosom  b}-  a  brooch 
enclosing  a  miniature.  Her  feet,  in  black  velvet  boots, 
rested  on  a  cushion.  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  like  her 
maid,  was  knitting  a  stocking,  and  she,  too,  had  a 
needle  stuck  through  her  white  curls  beneath  the  lace 
of  her  cap. 

"Have  3^ou  seen  Monsieur  Millet?"  she  said  to 
Godefroid,  in  the  head  voice  peculiar  to  the  dowagers 
of  the  faubourg  Saint-Germain,  observing  that  her  visi- 
tor seemed  confused,  and  as  if  to  put  the  words  into  his 
mouth. 

"Yes,  madame." 

"I  fear  that  the  apartment  will  scarce!}'  suit  3'ou," 
she  said,  noticing  the  elegance  and  newness  of  his 
clothes. 

Godefroid  was  wearing  polished  leather  boots,  yellow 
gloves,  handsome  studs,  and  a  very  prett}'  gold  chain 
passed  through  the  buttonhole  of  his  waistcoat  of  black 
silk  with  blue  flowers.  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  took 
a  little  silver  whistle  from  her  pocket  and  blew  it.  The 
serving-woman  came. 

"  Manon,  m}'  child,  show  this  gentleman  the  apart- 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  21 

ment.  Would  you,  m}'  dear  vicar,  be  so  kind  as  to 
accompany  him?"  she  said,  addressing  the  priest.  "If 
by  chance,"  she  added,  rising  and  again  looking  at 
Godefroid,  "the  apartment  suits  jou,  we  will  talk  of 
the  conditions." 

Godefroid  bowed  and  went  out.  He  heard  the  rattle 
of  ke^'s  which  Manon  took  from  a  drawer,  and  he  saw 
her  light  the  candle  in  a  large  brass  candlestick.  Manon 
went  first,  without  uttering  a  word.  When  Godefroid 
found  himself  again  on  the  staircase,  winding  up  two 
flights,  he  doubted  the  realit}'  of  life,  he  dreamed  awake, 
he  saw  with  his  eyes  the  fantastic  world  of  romances  he 
had  read  in  his  idle  hours.  An}'  Parisian  leaving,  as 
he  did,  the  modern  quarter,  with  its  luxury  of  houses 
and  furniture,  the  glitter  of  its  restaurants  and  theatres, 
the  tumult  and  movement  of  the  heart  of  Paris,  would 
have  shared  his  feeling. 

The  candle  carried  b}'  the  woman  feebl}'  lighted  the 
winding  stair,  where  spiders  swung  their  draperies  gray 
with  dust.  Manon  wore  a  petticoat  with  heavy  plaits 
of  a  coarse  woollen  stuff;  the  bodice  was  square  be- 
fore and  square  behind,  and  all  her  clothes  seemed  to 
hang  together.  When  she  reached  the  second  floor, 
which,  it  will  be  remembered,  was  actuall}'  the  third, 
Manon  stopped,  turned  a  key  in  an  ancient  lock, 
and  opened  a  door  painted  in  a  coarse  imitation  of 
mahogany. 


22  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"  This  is  it,"  she  said,  entering  first. 

Was  it  a  miser,  was  it  an  artist  dying  in  penury,  was 
it  a  cynic  to  whom  the  world  was  naught,  or  some  re- 
ligious soul  detached  from  life,  who  had  occupied  this 
apartment?  That  triple  question  might  well  be  asked 
by  one  who  breathed  the  odor  of  that  povert}^  who  saw 
the  greasy  spots  upon  the  papers  yellow  with  smoke, 
the  blackened  ceiUngs,  the  dusty  windows  with  their 
casement  panes,  the  discolored  floor-bricks,  the  wains- 
cots layered  with  a  sort  of  sticky  glaze.  A  damp 
chill  came  from  the  chimneys  with  their  mantels  of 
painted  stone,  surmounted  by  mirrors  in  panels  of  the 
style  of  the  seventeenth  century.  The  apartment  was 
square,  like  the  house,  and  looked  out  upon  the  inner 
court,  which  could  not  now  be  seen  because  of  the 
darkness. 

' '  Who  has   lived   here  ? "    asked   Godefroid  of  the 

priest. 

"A  former  councillor  of  the  parliament,  a  great- 
uncle  of  madame.  Monsieur  de  Boisfrelon.  After  the 
Revolution  he  fell  into  dotage  ;  but  he  did  not  die  until 
1832,  at  the  age  of  ninet^'-six.  Madame  could  not  at 
first  make  up  her  mind  to  let  his  rooms  to  a  stranger, 
but  she  finds  she  cannot  afford  to  lose  the  rent." 

"  Madame  will  have  the  apartment  cleaned  and  fur- 
nished in  a  manner  to  satisf}'  monsieur,"  said  Manon. 

"That  will  depend  on  the  arrangement  you  make 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  23 

with  her,"  said  the  priest.  "You  have  here  a  fine 
parlor,  a  large  sleeping-room  and  closet,  and  those 
little  rooms  in  the  angle  will  make  an  excellent  stud}'. 
It  is  the  same  arrangement  as  in  my  apartment  below, 
also  in  the  one  overhead." 

"Yes,"  said  Manon,  "Monsieur  Alain's  apartment 
is  just  like  this,  only  his  has  a  view  of  the  tower." 

"I  think  I  had  better  see  the  rooms  by  daylight," 
said  Godefroid,  timidl3^ 

' '  Perhaps  so,"  said  Manon. 

The  priest  and  Godefroid  went  downstairs,  leaving 
the  woman  to  lock  the  doors.  When  they  re-entered 
the  salon,  Godefroid,  who  was  getting  inured  to  the 
surroundings,  looked  about  him  while  discoursing  with 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  and  examined  the  persons 
and  things  there  present. 

The  salon  had  curtains  at  its  windows  of  old  red 
damask,  with  lambrequins,  tied  back  at  the  sides 
with  silken  cords.  The  red-tiled  floor  showed  at  the 
edges  of  an  old  tapestry  carpet  too  small  to  cover 
the  whole  room.  The  woodwork  was  painted  gray. 
The  plastered  ceiling,  divided  in  two  parts  by  a  heavy 
beam  which  started  from  the  fireplace,  seemed  a  con- 
cession tardily  made  to  luxurj'.  Armchairs,  with  their 
woodwork  painted  white,  were  covered  with  tapestry. 
A  paltr}'  clock,  between  two  copper-gilt  candlesticks, 
decorated   the   mantel-shelf.      Beside   Madame   de   la 


24  The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation, 

Chanterie  was  an  ancient  table  with  spindle  legs,  on 
which  lay  her  balls  of  worsted  in  a  wicker  basket.  A 
hydrostatic  lamp  lighted  the  scene.  The  four  men,  who 
were  seated  there,  silent,  immovable,  like  bronze  statues, 
had  evidently  stopped  their  conversation  with  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie  when  they  heard  the  stranger  returning. 
They  all  had  cold,  discreet  faces,  in  keeping  with  the 
room,  the  house,  the  quarter  of  the  town. 

Madame  de  la  Chanterie  admitted  the  justice  of 
Godefroid's  observations ;  but  told  him  that  she  did 
not  wish  to  make  any  change  until  she  knew  the  inten- 
tions of  her  lodger,  or  rather  her  boarder.  If  he  would 
conform  to  the  customs  of  the  house  he  could  become 
her  boarder ;  but  these  customs  were  widel}-  different 
from  those  of  Paris.  Life  in  the  rue  Chanoinesse  was 
like  provincial  life:  the  lodger  must  always  be  in  b}-  ten 
o'clock  at  night ;  they  disliked  noise  ;  and  could  have 
no  women  or  children  to  break  up  their  customary 
habits.  An  ecclesiastic  might  conform  to  these  wa3's. 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  desired,  above  all,  some  one 
of  simple  life,  who  would  not  be  exacting ;  she  could 
afford  to  put  only  the  strictest  necessaries  into  the 
apartment.  Monsieur  Alain  (here  she  designated  one 
of  the  four  men  present)  was  satisfied,  and  she  would 
do  for  a  new  tenant  just  as  she  did  for  the  others. 

"I  do  not  think,"  said  the  priest,  "  that  monsieur  is 
inclined  to  enter  our  convent." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  25 

"Eh!  why  not?"  said  Monsieur  Alain;  "we  are 
all  well  off  here  ;    we  have  nothing  to  complain  of." 

"Madame,"  said  Godefioid,  rising,  "I  shall  have  the 
honor  of  calling  again  to-nioi  row." 

Though  he  was  a  young  man,  the  four  old  men  and 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  rose,  and  the  vicar  accom- 
panied him  to  the  portico.  A  whistle  sounded.  At 
that  signal  the  porter  came  with  a  lantern,  guided 
Godefroid  to  the  street,  and  closed  behind  him  the 
enormous  yellow  door,  —  ponderous  as  that  of  a  prison, 
and  decorated  with  arabesque  ironwork  of  a  remote 
period  that  was  difficult  to  determine. 

Though  Godefroid  got  into  a  cabriolet,  and  was  soon 
rolling  into  the  living,  lighted,  glowing  regions  of  Paris, 
what  he  had  seen  still  appeared  to  him  a  dream,  and 
his  impressions,  as  he  made  his  wa^^  along  the  boule- 
vard des  Italiens,  had  already  the  remoteness  of  a 
memory.  He  asked  himself,  "  Shall  I  to-morrow  find 
those  people  there  ?  " 


2G  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 


III. 


THE    HOUSE    OF    MONGENOD. 

The  next  day,  as  Godefroid  rose  amid  the  appoint- 
niouts  of  modern  luxiirv  and  the  choice  appliances  of 
English  '' comfort,"  he  remembered  the  details  of  his 
visit  to  that  cloister  of  Notre-Dame,  and  the  meaning 
of  the  things  he  had  seen  there  came  into  his  mind. 
The  three  nnknown  and  silent  men,  whose  dress,  atti- 
tude, and  stillness  acted  powerfnlly  npon  him,  were 
no  doubt  boarders  hke  the  priest.  The  solemnit}'  of 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  now  seemed  to  him  a  secret 
diirnitv  with  which  she  bore  some  orreat  misfortune.  But 
still,  in  spite  of  the  explanations  which  Godefroid  gave 
himself,  he  could  not  help  fancying  there  was  an  air  of 
mystery  about  those  sober  figures. 

He  looked  around  him  and  selected  the  pieces  of 
furniture  that  he  would  keep,  those  that  were  indis- 
pensable to  him  ;  but  when  lie  transported  them  in 
thouirht  to  the  miserable  lodixius^  in  the  rue  Chanoin- 
esse,  he  began  to  laugh  at  the  contrast  they  would 
make  there,  resolving  to  sell  all  and  let  Madame  de 
la  Chanterie  furnish  the  rooms  for  him.      He  wanted 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  27 

a  new  life,  and  the  ver}'  sight  of  these  objects  would 
remind  him  of  that  which  he  wished  to  forget.  In  his 
desire  for  transformation  (for  he  belonged  to  those 
characters  who  spring  at  a  bound  into  the  middle  of 
a  situation,  instead  of  advancing,  as  others  do,  step 
b}'  step),  he  was  seized  while  he  breakfasted  with  an 
idea,  —  he  would  turn  his  whole  property  into  mone}', 
pa}'  his  debts,  and  place  the  remainder  of  his  capital 
in  the  banking-house  with  which  his  father  had  done 
business. 

This  house  was  the  firm  of  Mongenod  and  Compan}'', 
established  in  1816  or  1817,  whose  reputation  for  hon- 
esty and  uprightness  had  never  been  questioned  in 
the  midst  of  the  commercial  depravit}'  which  smirched, 
more  or  less,  all  the  banking-houses  of  Paris.  In  spite 
of  their  immense  wealth,  the  houses  of  Nucingen,  du 
Tillet,  the  Keller  Brothers,  Palma  and  Compan}',  were 
each  regarded,  more  or  less,  with  secret  disrespect, 
although  it  is  true  this  disrespect  was  onlj'  whispered. 
Evil  means  had  produced  such  fine  results,  such  polit- 
ical successes,  dynastic  principles  covered  so  com- 
pletely base  workings,  that  no  one  in  1834  thouglit  of 
the  mud  in  which  the  roots  of  these  fine  trees,  tho 
mainstay'  of  the  State,  were  plunged.  Nevertheless- 
there  was  not  a  single  one  of  those  great  bankers  to 
wliom  the  confidence  expressed  in  the  house  of  Mon- 
genod was  not  a  wound.      Like  English  houses,  the 


28  The  BrotherJwod  of  Consolation. 

Mongenods  made  no  external  displa}^  of  luxury.  They 
lived  in  dignified  stillness,  satisfied  to  do  their  business 
prudently',  wisely,  and  with  a  stern  uprightness  which 
enabled  them  to  carry  it  from  one  end  of  the  globe  to 
the  other. 

The  actual  head  of  the  house,  Frederic  Mongenod,  is 
the  brother-in-law  of  the  Vicomte  de  Fontaine  ;  there- 
fore, this  numerous  famity  is  allied  through  the  Baron 
de  Fontaine  to  Monsieur  Grossetete,  the  receiver- 
general,  brother  of  the  Grossetete  and  Company  of 
Limoges,  to  the  Vandenesses,  and  to  Planat  de  Baudr}-, 
another  receiver-general.  These  connections,  having 
procured  for  the  late  Mongenod,  father  of  the  present 
head  of  the  house,  man}-  favors  in  the  financial  opera- 
tions under  the  Restoration,  obtained  for  him  also  the 
confidence  of  the  old  noblesse^  whose  propert}'  and  whose 
savings,  which  were  immense,  were  deposited  in  this 
bank.  Far  from  coveting  a  peerage,  lil^e  the  Kellers, 
Nucingen,  and  du  Tillet,  the  Mongenods  kept  away 
from  politics,  and  only  knew  as  much  about  them  as 
their  banking  interests  demanded. 

The  house  of  Mongenod  is  established  in  a  fine  old 
mansion  in  the  rue  de  la  Victoire,  where  Madame 
Mongenod,  the  mother,  lived  with  her  two  sons,  all  three 
being  partners  in  the  house,  —  the  share  of  the  Vicom- 
tesse  de  Fontaine  having  been  bought  out  by  them  on 
the  death  of  the  elder  Mongenod  in  1827. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  29 

Frederic  Mongenod,  a  handsome  3'onng  man  about 
thirty-five  years  of  age,  cold,  silent,  and  reserved  in 
manner  like  a  Swiss,  and  neat  as  an  Englistiman,  liad 
acquired  by  intercourse  witli  his  father  all  the  qualities 
necessary  for  his  difficult  profession.  Better  educated 
than  the  generality  of  bankers,  his  studies  had  the 
breadth  and  universality'  which  characterize  the  poh'- 
technic  training ;  and  he  had,  like  most  bankers,  pre- 
dilections and  tastes  outside  of  his  business,  —  he  loved 
mechanics  and  chemistr}'.  The  second  brother,  who 
was  ten  3'ears  younger  tban  Frederic,  held  the  same 
position  in  the  otiice  of  his  elder  brother  tliat  a  head 
clerk  holds  in  that  of  a  notar\'  or  lawyer.  Frederic 
trained  him,  as  he  had  himself  been  trained  b}'  his 
father,  in  the  variety  of  knowledge  necessarj'  to  a  true 
banker,  who  is  to  money  what  a  writer  is  to  ideas,  — 
they  must  both  know  all  of  that  with  which  thej-  have 
to  deal. 

When  Godefroid  reached  the  banking-house  and  gave 
his  name,  he  saw  at  once  the  estimation  in  which  his 
father  had  been  held ;  for  he  was  ushered  through  the 
offices  without  dela}'  to  the  private  counting-room  of 
the  Mono;enods.  This  countin2;-room  was  closed  with  a 
glass  door,  so  that  Godefroid,  without  an}-  desire  to 
listen,  overheard  as  he  approached  it  what  was  being 
said  there. 

"  Madame,  your  account  is  balanced  to  sixteen  hun- 


30  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

dred  thousand  francs,"  said  the  3'ounger  Mongenod. 
'^  I  do  not  know  what  my  brother's  intentions  are  ;  he 
alone  can  say  whetlier  an  advance  of  a  hundred  thou- 
sand francs  can  be  made.  You  must  have  been  im- 
prudent. Sixteen  hundred  thousand  francs  should  not 
be  entrusted  to  any  business." 

''Do  not  speak  so  loud,  Louis!"  said  a  woman's 
voice.  ''  Your  brother  has  often  told  you  to  speak  in 
a  low  voice.  There  may  be  some  one  in  the  next 
room." 

At  this  moment  Frederic  Mongenod  himself  opened 
the  door  of  communication  between  his  private  house 
and  the  counting-room.  He  saw  Godefroid  and  crossed 
the  room,  bowing  respectfullj^  to  the  lady  who  was  con- 
versing with  his  brother. 

"To  whom  have  I  the  honor  of  speaking?"  he  said 
to  Godefroid. 

As  soon  as  Godefroid  gave  his  name,  Frederic 
begged  him  to  be  seated ;  and  as  the  banker  opened 
the  lid  of  his  desk,  Louis  Mongenod  and  the  lad^^,  who 
was  no  other  than  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  rose  and 
went  up  to  him.  All  three  then  moved  into  the  em- 
brasure of  a  window  and  talked  in  a  low  voice  with 
Madame  Mongenod,  the  mother,  who  was  sitting  there, 
and  to  whom  all  the  affairs  of  the  bank  were  confided. 
For  over  thirty  3'ears  this  woman  had  given,  to  her 
husband   first  and  then  to   her   sons,   such   proofs  of 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  31 

business  sagacity  that  she  had  long  been  a  managing 
partner  in  the  firm  and  signed  for  it. 

Godefroid,  as  he  looked  about  him,  noticed  on  a 
shelf  certain  boxes  ticketed  with  the  words  "  De  la 
Chanterie,"  and  numbered  1  to  7.  When  the  confer- 
ence was  ended  by  the  banker  saying  to  his  brother, 
''  Very  good  ;  go  down  to  the  cashier,"  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  turned  round,  saw  Godefroid,  checked  a 
gesture  of  surprise,  and  asked  a  few  questions  of  the 
banker  in  a  low  voice,  to  which  he  replied  in  a  few 
words  spoken  equally  in  a  whisper. 

Madame  de  la  Chanterie  now  wore  gray  silk  stock- 
ings and  small  prunella  shoes  ;  her  gown  was  the  same 
as  before,  but  she  was  wrapped  in  a  Venetian  ''  mantua," 
—  a  sort  of  cloak  which  was  just  then  returning  into 
fashion.  On  her  head  was  a  drawn  bonnet  of  green 
silk,  lined  with  white  silk,  of  a  st3'le  called  a  la  bonne 
femme.  Her  face  was  framed  by  a  cloud  of  lace.  She 
held  herself  very  erect,  in  an  attitude  which  bespoke, 
if  not  noble  birth,  certainl}'  the  habits  of  an  aristocratic 
life.  AVithout  the  extreme  affability  of  her  manner, 
she  might  have  seemed  haughty ;  she  was  certainly 
imposing. 

"It  is  the  will  of  Providence  rather  than  mere 
chance  that  has  brought  us  here  together,  monsieur," 
she  said  to  Godefroid  ;  "  for  I  had  almost  decided  to 
refuse  a  lodger  whose  ways  of  life  seemed  to  me  quite 


32  The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation, 

antipathetic  to  those  of  my  household ;  but  Monsieur 
Mongenod  has  just  given  me  some  information  about 
3'our  family  which  — " 

"Ah,  madame,  —  monsieur!''  said  Godefroid,  ad- 
dressing both  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  the  banker, 
"I  have  no  longer  a  family;  and  I  have  come  here 
now  to  ask  some  financial  advice  of  my  father's  busi- 
ness advisers  as  to  the  best  method  of  adapting  my 
means  to  a  new  way  of  life." 

Godefroid  then  succinctlj',  and  in  as  few  words  as 
possible,  related  his  history,  and  expressed  his  desire 
to  change  his  existence. 

"  Formerl}^,"  he  said,  "  a  man  in  my  position  would 
have  made  himself  a  monk ;  but  there  are  no  longer 
an}^  religious  orders." 

"  Go  and  live  with  madame,  if  she  is  willing  to  take 
3'ou,"  said  Frederic  Mongenod,  after  exchanging  a 
glance  with  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  "and  do  not  sell 
out  3'our  propert}' ;  leave  it  in  m}'  hands.  Give  me  the 
exact  amount  of  3'Our  debts ;  I  will  agree  with  your 
creditors  for  pa3'ment  at  certain  dates,  and  3'ou  can 
have  for  3^ourself  about  a  hundred  and  fiftv  francs  a 
month.  It  will  thus  take  about  two  3'ears  to  clear  you. 
During  those  two  3'ears,  if  3'ou  take  those  quiet  lodg- 
ings, 3'ou  will  have  time  to  think  of  a  career,  especiall3'' 
among  the  persons  with  whom  3'ou  will  live,  who  are 
all  good  counsellors." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  33 

Here  Louis  Mongenod  returned,  bringing  in  his  hand 
a  hundred  notes  of  a  thousand  francs  each,  which  he 
gave  to  Madame  de  la  Chanterie.  Godefroid  offered 
his  arm  to  his  future  hostess,  and  took  her  down  to  the 
hackney-coach  which  was  waiting  for  her. 

"  I  hope  I  shall  see  3'ou  soon,  monsieur,"  she  said  in 
a  cordial  tone  of  voice. 

"  At  what  hour  shall  3'Ou  be  at  home,  madame?  "  he 
asked. 

''At  two  o'clock." 

"  I  shall  have  time  to  sell  my  furniture,"  he  said,  as 
he  bowed  to  her. 

During  the  short  time  that  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's 
arm  rested  upon  his  as  the}'  walked  to  the  carriage, 
Godefroid  could  not  escape  the  glamour  of  the  words : 
"  Your  account  is  for  sixteen  hundred  thousand 
francs  !  "  —  words  said  b}'  Louis  Mongenod  to  the 
woman  whose  life  was  spent  in  the  depths  of  the  clois- 
ters of  Notre-Dame.  The  thought,  "  She  must  be 
rich ! "  entirel}"  changed  his  way  of  looking  at  the 
matter.  "How  old  is  she?"  he  began  to  ask  him- 
self; and  a  vision  of  a  romance  in  the  rue  Chanoinesse 
came  to  him.  "  She  certainly  has  an  air  of  nobility  ! 
Can  she  be  concerned  in  some  bank?"  thought  he. 

In  our  day  nine  hundred  and  ninety-nine  young  men 
out  of  a  thousand  in  Godefroid's  position  would  lui\  ^ 
had  the  thought  of  marrying  that  woman. 

3 


34  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

A  farniture  dealer,  who  also  had  apartments  to  let, 
paid  about  three  thousand  francs  for  the  articles  Gode- 
froid  was  willing  to  sell,  and  agreed  to  let  him  keep 
them  during  the  few  days  that  were  needed  to  prepare 
the  shabb}'  apartment  in  the  rue  Chanoinesse  for  this 
lodger  with  a  sick  mind.  Godefroid  went  there  at 
once,  and  obtained  from  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  the 
address  of  a  painter  who,  for  a  moderate  sum,  agreed 
to  whiten  the  ceilings,  clean  the  windows,  paint  the 
woodwork,  and  stain  the  floors,  within  a  week.  Gode- 
froid took  the  measure  of  the  rooms,  intending  to  put 
the  same  carpet  in  all  of  them,  —  a  green  carpet  of  the 
cheapest  kind-  He  wished  for  the  plainest  uniformit}' 
In  this  retreat,  and  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  approved 
of  the  idea.  She  calculated,  with  Manon's  assistance, 
the  number  of  A'ards  of  white  calico  required  for  the 
window  curtains,  and  also  for  those  of  the  modest  iron 
bed ;  and  she  undertook  to  bu}'  and  have  them  made 
for  a  price  so  moderate  as  to  surprise  Godefroid. 
Having  brought  with  him  a  certain  amount  of  furni- 
ture, the  whole  cost  of  fitting  up  the  rooms  proved  to 
be  not  over  six  hundred  francs. 

*' We  lead  here,"  said  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  "a 
Christian  life,  which  does  not,  as  you  know,  accord 
with  many  superfluities ;  I  think  3'ou  have  too  manj" 
as  it  is." 

In  giving  this  hint  to  her  future  lodger,  she  looked  at 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  35 

a  diamond  which  gleamed  in  the  ring  through  which 
Godefroid's  blue  cravat  was  slipped. 

"I  onl}'  speak  of  this,"  she  added,  "because  of  the 
intention  you  expressed  to  abandon  the  frivolous  life 
you  complained  of  to  Monsieur  Mongenod." 

Godefroid  looked  at  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  as  he 
listened  to  the  harmonies  of  her  limpid  voice ;  he  ex- 
amined that  face  so  purely  white,  resembling  those  of 
the  cold,  grave  women  of  Holland  whom  the  Flemish 
painters  have  so  wonderfully  reproduced  with  their 
smooth  skins,  in  which  a  wrinkle  is  impossible. 

"White  and  plump!"  he  said  to  himself,  as  he 
walked  away;   "but  her  hair  is  white,  too." 

Godefroid,  like  all  weak  natures,  took  readil}'  to  a 
new  life,  believing  it  satisfactor}' ;  and  he  was  now 
quite  eager  to  take  up  his  abode  in  the  rue  Chanoin- 
esse.  Nevertheless,  a  prudent  thought,  or,  if  yoxx  prefer 
to  say  so,  a  distrustful  thought,  occurred  to  him.  Two 
da3's  before  his  installation,  he  went  again  to  see  Mon- 
sieur Mongenod  to  obtain  some  more  definite  informa- 
tion about  the  house  he  was  to  enter. 

During  the  few  moments  he  had  spent  in  his  future 
lodgings  overlooking  the  changes  that  were  being  made 
in  them,  he  had  noticed  the  coming  and  going  of  sev- 
eral persons  whose  appearance  and  behavior,  without 
being  exacth'  m3'sterious,  excited  a  belief  that  some 
secret  occupation  or  profession  was  being  carried  on  in 


36  The  Brotherhood  of  Corisolation. 

that  house.  At  that  particular  period  there  was  much 
talk  of  attempts  by  the  elder  branch  of  the  Bourbons 
to  recover  the  throne,  and  Godefroid  suspected  some 
conspirac}'.  When  he  found  himself  in  the  banker's 
counting-room  held  b}'  the  scrutinizing  e3'e  of  Frederic 
Mongenod  while  he  made  his  inquiry,  he  felt  ashamed 
as  he  saw  a  derisive  smile  on  the  lips  of  the  listener. 

"Madame  la  Baronne  de  la  Chanterie,"  replied  the 
banker,  "is  one  of  the  most  obscure  persons  in  Paris, 
but  she  is  also  one  of  the  most  honorable.  Have  you 
an}'  object  in  asking  for  information  ?  " 

Godefroid  retreated  into  generalities  :  he  was  going 
to  live  among  strangers  ;  he  naturall}^  wished  to  know 
something  of  those  with  whom  he  should  be  intimately 
thrown.  But  the  banker's  smile  became  more  and  more 
sarcastic ;  and  Godefroid,  more  and  more  embarrassed, 
was  ashamed  of  the  step  he  had  taken,  and  which  bore 
no  fruit,  for  he  dared  not  continue  his  questions  about 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  her  inmates. 


The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation,  37 


IV. 

FAREWELL   TO    THE    LIFE    OF   THE    WORLD. 

Two  days  later,  of  a  Monday  evening,  having  dined 
for  the  last  time  at  the  Cafe  Anglais,  and  seen  the  two 
first  pieces  at  the  Varietes,  he  went,  at  ten  o'clock,  to 
sleep  for  the  first  time  in  the  rue  Chanoinesse,  where 
Manon  conducted  him  to  his  room. 

Solitude  has  charms  comparable  only  to  those  of  sav- 
age life,  which  no  European  has  ever  really  abandoned 
after  once  tasting  them.  This  may  seem  strange  at 
an  epoch  when  ever}^  one  lives  so  much  to  be  seen  of 
others  that  all  the  world  concern  themselves  in  their 
neighbors'  affairs,  and  when  private  life  will  soon  be  a 
thing  of  the  past,  so  bold  and  so  intrusive  are  the  e3'es 
of  the  press, — that  modern  Argus.  Nevertheless,  it 
is  a  truth  which  rests  on  the  authority  of  the  first  six 
Christian  centuries,  during  which  no  recluse  ever  re- 
turned to  social  life.  Few  are  the  moral  wounds  that 
solitude  will  not  heal. 

So,  at  first,  Godefroid  was  soothed  b}'  the  deep  peace 
and  absolute  stillness  of  his  new  abode,  as  a  wearj' 
traveller  is  relaxed  by  a  bath. 


38  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

The*  very  day  after  his  arrival  at  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie's  he  was  forced  to  examine  himself,  under 
the  sense  that  he  was  separated  from  all,  even  from 
Paris,  though  he  still  lived  in  the  shadow  of  its  cathe- 
dral. Stripped  of  his  social  vanities,  lie  was  about  to 
have  no  other  witnesses  of  his  acts  than  his  own  con- 
science and  the  inmates  of  that  house.  He  had  quitted 
the  great  high-road  of  the  world  to  enter  an  unknown 
path.  Where  was  that  path  to  lead  him?  to  what 
occupation  should  he  now  be  drawn? 

He  had  been  for  two  hours  absorbed  in  such  reflec- 
tions when  Manon,  the  onl}^  servant  of  the  house, 
knocked  at  his  door  to  tell  him  that  the  second  break- 
fast was  served  and  the  family  were  waiting  for  him. 
Twelve  o'clock  was  striking.  The  new  lodger  went 
down  at  once,  stirred  by  a  wish  to  see  and  judge  the 
five  persons  among  whom  his  life  was  in  future  to  be 
spent. 

When  he  entered  the  room  he  found  all  the  inmates, 
of  the  house  standing ;  the}^  were  dressed  precisely  as 
they  were  on  the  da}'  when  he  came  to  make  his  first 
inquiries. 

"Did  you  sleep  well?"  asked  Madame  de  la  Chan- 
terie. 

"So  well  that  I  did  not  wake  up  till  ten  o'clock," 
replied  Godefroid,  bowing  to  the  four  men,  who  re- 
turned the  bow  with  gravity. 


c; 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  39 


We  thought  so,"  said  an  old   man  named  Alain, 


smiling. 

"  Manon  spoke  of  a  second  breakfast,"  said  Gode- 
froid ;  "but  I  fear  that  I  have  alread}'  broken  some 
rule.     At  what  hour  do  30U  rise?" 

"  Not  quite  so  early  as  the  old  monks,'^  said  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie,  courteoush',  "  but  as  earl}^  as  the 
working-men,  —  six  in  winter,  half-past  three  in  sum- 
mer. Our  bed-time  is  ruled  by  that  of  the  sun.  We 
are  always  asleep  b}^  nine  in  winter  and  eleven  in  sum- 
mer. On  rising,  we  all  take  a  little  milk,  which  comes 
from  our  farm,  after  saying  our  prayers,  except  the 
Abbe  de  Veze,  who  sa3s  the  first  mass,  at  six  o'clock 
in  summer  and  seven  o'clock  in  winter,  at  Notre-Dame, 
where  these  gentlemen  are  present  daily,  as  well  as 
your  humble  servant." 

Madame  de  la  Chanterie  ended  her  explanation  as 
the  five  lodgers  took  their  seats  at  table. 

The  dining-room,  painted  throughout  in  gray,  the  de- 
sign of  the  woodwork  being  in  the  stj'le  of  Louis  XIV., 
adjoined  the  sort  of  antechamber  in  which  Manon  was 
usually  stationed,  and  it  seemed  to  be  parallel  with 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  bedroom,  which  also  opened 
into  the  salon.  This  room  had  no  other  ornament  than 
a  tall  clock.  The  furniture  consisted  of  six  chairs  with 
oval  backs  covered  with  worsted-work,  done  probabl}' 
b}'  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  own  hand,  two  buff*ets 


40  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

and  a  table,  all  of  mahogany,  on  which  Manon  did  not 
la}*  a  cloth  for  breakfast.  The  breakfast,  of  monastic 
frugality,  was  composed  of  a  small  turbot  with  a  white 
sauce,  potatoes,  a  salad,  and  four  dishes  of  fruit,  — 
peaches,  grapes,  strawberries,  and  fresh  almonds ;  also, 
for  relishes,  honey  in  the  comb  (as  in  Switzerland), 
radishes,  cucumbers,  sardines,  and  butter,  —  the  whole 
served  in  the  well-known  china  with  tiny  blue  flowers 
and  green  leaves  on  a  white  ground,  which  was  no 
doubt  a  luxurj^  in  the  days  of  Louis  XIV.,  but  had 
now,  under  the  growing  demands  of  luxurj',  come  to 
be  regarded  as  common. 

"We  keep  the  fasts,"  said  Monsieur  Alain.  "As 
we  go  to  mass  ever}"  morning,  3'ou  will  not  be  surprised 
to  find  us  blindly  following  all  the  customs  of  the 
Church,  even  the  severest." 

"And  you  shall  begin  bjMmitating  us,"  said  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie,  with  a  glance  at  Godefroid,  whom  she 
had  placed  beside  her. 

Of  the  five  persons  present  Godefroid  knew  the 
names  of  three,  —  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  the  Abbe 
de  Veze,  and  Monsieur  Alain.  He  wished  to  know 
those  of  the  other  two ;  but  they  kept  silence  and  ate 
their  food  with  the  attention  which  recluses  appear  to 
give  to  every  detail  of  a  meal. 

"  Does  this  fine  fruit  come  also  from  3'our  farm, 
madame?"   asked  Godefroid. 


The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation.  41 

*'Yes,  monsieur,"  she  replied.  "We  have  a  little 
model  farm,  like  the  government  itself;  we  call  it 
our  country  house ;  it  is  twelve  miles  from  here,  on 
the  road  to  Ital}-,  near  Villeneuve-Saint-Georges." 

"  It  is  a  property  that  belongs  to  us  all,  and  is  to  go 
to  the  survivor,"  said  the  goodman  Alain. 

"Oh,  it  is  not  very  considerable!"  added  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie,  rather  hastily,  as  if  she  feared  that 
Godefroid  might  think  these  remarks  a  bait. 

"  There  are  thirty  acres  of  tilled  land,"  said  one  of 
the  two  personages  still  unknown  to  Godefroid,  "six 
of  meadow,  and  an  enclosure  containing  four  acres, 
in  which  our  house,  which  adjoins  the  farmhouse, 
stands." 

"  But  such  a  property  as  that,"  said  Godefroid, 
"must  be  worth  a  hundred  thousand  francs." 

"  Oh,  we  don't  get  anything  out  of  it  but  our  provi- 
sions I  "  said  the  same  personage. 

He  was  a  tall,  grave,  spare  man,  with  all  the  appear- 
ance of  having  served  in  the  army.  His  white  hair 
showed  him  to  be  past  sixty,  and  his  face  betra3'ed 
some  violent  grief  controlled  hy  religion. 

The  second  unnamed  person,  who  seemed  to  be 
something  between  a  master  of  rhetoric  and  a  busi- 
ness agent,  was  of  ordinary  height,  plump,  but  active 
withal.  His  face  had  the  jovial  expression  which  char- 
acterizes those  of  lawyers  and  notaries  in  Paris. 


42  The  Brotherhood  of   Consolation. 

The  dress  of  these  four  personages  revealed  a 
neatness  due  to  the  most  scrupulous  personal  care. 
The  same  hand,  and  it  was  that  of  Manon,  could 
be  seen  in  ever}-  detail.  Their  coats  were  perhaps 
ten  years  old,  but  they  were  preserved,  like  the  coats 
of  vicars,  by  the  occult  power  of  the  servant-woman, 
and  the  constant  care  with  which  they  were  worn. 
These  men  seemed  to  wear  on  their  backs  the  liverj-  of 
a  system  of  life ;  they  belonged  to  one  thought,  their 
looks  said  the  same  word,  their  faces  breathed  a  gentle 
resignation,  a  provoking  quietude. 

''Is  it  an  indiscretion,  madame,"  said  Godefroid, 
' '  to  ask  the  name  of  these  gentlemen  ?  I  am  read\' 
to  explain  my  life ;  can  I  know  as  much  of  theirs  as 
custom  will  allow?" 

"That  gentleman,"  said  Madame  de  la  Chanterie, 
motioning  to  the  tall,  thin  man,  "  is  Monsieur  Nicolas  ; 
he  is  a  colonel  of  gendarmerie,  retired  with  the  rank 
of  brigadier-general.  And  this,"  she  added,  looking 
towards  the  stout  little  man,  "  is  a  former  councillor  of 
the  royal  courts  of  Paris,  who  retired  from  the  magis- 
trac}^  in  1830.  His  name  is  Monsieur  Joseph.  Though 
you  have  only  been  with  us  one  day,  I  will  tell  3'ou  that 
in  the  world  Monsieur  Nicolas  once  bore  the  name  of 
the  Marquis  de  Montauran,  and  Monsieur  Joseph  that 
of  Lecamus,  Baron  de  Tresnes ;  but  for  us,  as  for  the 
world,  those  names  no  longer  exist.     These  gentlemen 


The  BrotlierJiood  of  Consolation.  43 

are  without  heirs  ;  they  onl}"  advance  by  a  little  the 
oblivion  which  awaits  their  names  ;  the}'  are  simply 
Monsieur  Nicolas  and  Monsieur  Joseph,  as  3'ou  will  be 
Monsieur  Godefroid." 

As  he  heard  those  names,  —  one  so  celebrated  in  the 
annals  of  royalism  by  the  catastrophe  which  put  an  end 
to  the  uprising  of  the  Chouans  ;  the  other  so  revered  in 
the  halls  of  the  old  parliament  of  Paris,  —  Godefroid 
could  not  repress  a  quiver.  He  looked  at  these  relics 
of  the  grandest  things  of  the  fallen  monarchy,  —  the 
noblesse  and  the  law,  —  and  he  could  see  no  movement 
of  the  features,  no  change  in  the  countenance,  that 
revealed  the  presence  of  a  worldly  thought.  Those 
men  no  longer  remembered,  or  did  not  chose  to  re- 
member, what  they  had  been.  This  was  Godefroid's 
first  lesson. 

"  Each  of  3'our  names,  gentlemen,  is  a  whole  history 
in  itself,"  he  said  respectfulh'. 

"Yes,  the  history  of  my  time,  —  ruins,"  replied 
Monsieur  Joseph. 

"You  are  in  good  companj^,"  said  Monsieur  Alain, 
smiling. 

The  latter  can  be  described  in  a  word :  he  was  the 
small  bourgeois  of  Paris,  the  worthy  middle-class  being 
with  a  kindly  face,  reheved  by  pure  white  hair,  but 
made  insipid  by  an  eternal  smile. 

As  for  the  priest,  the  Abbe  de  Veze,  his  presence 


44  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

said  all.  The  priest  who  fulfils  his  mission  is  known 
b}'  the  first  glance  he  gives  3011,  and  by  the  glance  that 
others  who  know  him  give  to  him. 

That  which  struck  Godefroid  most  forcibly  at  first 
was  the  profound  respect  which  the  four  lodgers  mani- 
fested for  Madame  de  la  Chanterie.  They  all  seemed, 
even  the  priest,  in  spite  of  the  sacred  character  his 
functions  gave  him,  to  regard  her  as  a  queen.  Gode- 
froid also  noticed  their  sobriety.  Each  seemed  to  eat 
only  for  nourishment.  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  took, 
as  did  the  rest,  a  single  peach  and  half  a  bunch  of 
grapes  ;  but  she  told  her  new  lodger,  as  she  oflTered  him 
the  various  dishes,  not  to  imitate  such  temperance. 

Godefroid's  curiosity  was  excited  to  the  highest  de- 
gree by  this  first  entrance  on  his  new  life.  When  they 
returned  to  the  salon  after  breakfast,  he  was  left  alone ; 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  retired  to  the  embrasure  of  a 
window  and  held  a  little  private  council  with  her  four 
friends.  This  conference,  entirely  devoid  of  animation, 
lasted  half  an  hour.  They  spoke  together  in  a  low 
voice,  exchanging  words  w-hich  each  of  them  appeared 
to  have  thought  over.  From  time  to  time  Monsieur 
Alain  and  Monsieur  Joseph  consulted  a  note-book, 
turning  over  its  leaves. 

"See  the  faubourg,"  said  Madame  de  la  Chanterie 
to  Monsieur  Joseph,  who  left  the  house. 

That  was  the  only  word  Godefroid  distinguished. 


The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation.  45 

"And  3'ou  the  Saint-Marceau  quarter,"  she  con- 
tinued, addressing  Monsieur  Nicolas.  ''Hunt  through 
the  faubourg  Saint-Germain  and  see  if  you  can  find 
what  we  want ; "  this  to  the  Abbe  de  Veze,  who  went 
away  immediatelj'.  "  And  3'ou,  my  dear  Alain,"  she 
added,  smiling  at  the  latter,  "make  an  examination. 
There,  those  important  matters  are  all  settled,"  she 
said,  returning  to  Godefroid. 

She  seated  herself  in  her  armchair,  took  a  little  piece 
of  linen  from  the  table  before  her,  and  began  to  sew  as 
if  she  were  emploj'cd  to  do  so. 

Godefroid,  lost  in  conjecture,  and  still  thinking  of  a 
royalist  conspiracy,  took  his  landlad^'^s  remark  as  an 
opening,  and  he  began  to  study  her  as  he  seated  him- 
self beside  her.  He  was  struck  hj  the  singular  dex- 
terity with  which  she  worked.  Although  everj'thing 
about  her  bespoke  the  great  lady,  she  showed  the 
dexterity  of  a  workwoman  ;  for  ever}"  one  can  see  at 
a  glance,  b}"  certain  manipulations,  the  work  of  a  work- 
man or  an  amateur. 

"  You  do  that,"  said  Godefroid,  "  as  if  3'ou  knew  the 
trade." 

"Alas!"   she  answered,  without  raising  her  head,  ; 
"  I  did  know  it  once  of  necessity'." 

Two  large  tears  came  into  her  e\'es,  and  rolled  down 
her  cheeks  to  tlie  linen  in  her  hand. 

"  Forgive  me,  mudame  !  "  cried  Godefroid. 


46  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

Madame  de  la  Chanterie  looked  at  her  new  lodger* 
and  saw  such  an  expression  of  genuine  regret  upon  his 
face,  that  she  made  him  a  friendly'  sign.  After  drj^- 
ing  her  e3'es,  she  immediately  recovered  the  calmness 
that  characterized  her  face,  which  was  less  cold  than 
chastened. 

"  You  are  here,  Monsieur  Godefroid,  —  for  3'ou  know 
already  that  we  shall  call  you  by  your  baptismal  name,  — 
you  are  here  in  the  midst  of  ruins  caused  by  a  great  tem- 
pest. We  have  each  been  struck  and  wounded  in  our 
hearts,  our  family  interests,  or  our  fortunes,  by  that 
whirlwind  of  forty  3'ears,  which  overthrew  religion  and 
ro3^alty,  and  dispersed  the  elements  of  all  that  made  old 
France.  Words  that  seem  quite  harmless  do  sometimes 
wound  us  all,  and  that  is  why  we  are  so  silent.  We  speak 
rarel}^  of  ourselves ;  we  forget  ourselves,  and  we  have 
found  a  wa}^  to  substitute  another  life  for  our  lives.  It 
is  because,  after  hearing  3'our  confidence  at  Monsieur 
Mongenod's,  I  thought  there  seemed  a  likeness  between 
3^our  situation  and  ours,  that  I  induced  my  four  friends 
to  receive  3'ou  among  us  ;  besides,  we  wanted  another 
monk  in  our  convent.  But  what  are  3'ou  going  to 
do?  No  one  can  face  solitude  without  some  moral 
resources." 

"Madame,  I  should  be  very  glad,  after  hearing  what 
joM  have  said,  if  you  yourself  would  be  the  guide  of  my 
destiny." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  47 

"  You  speak  like  a  man  of  the  work!,"  she  answered, 
"and  are  tr3'ing  to  flatter  me,  —  a  woman  of  sixt}' ! 
My  dear  child,"  she  went  on,  "  let  me  tell  j'ou  that  3'ou 
are  here  among  persons  who  believe  strongly  in  God ; 
who  have  all  felt  his  hand,  and  have  yielded  themselves 
to  him  almost  as  though  they  were  Trappists.  Have 
3'ou  ever  remarked  the  profound  sense  of  safety  in  a 
true  priest  when  he  has  given  himself  to  the  Lord,  when 
he  listens  to  his  voice,  and  strives  to  make  himself  a 
docile  instrument  in  the  hand  of  Providence?  He  has 
no  longer  vanit}^  or  self-love,  —  nothing  of  all  that  which 
wounds  continually  the  hearts  of  the  world.  His  quietude 
is  equal  to  that  of  the  fatalist ;  his  resignation  does  truly 
enable  him  to  bear  all.  The  true  priest,  such  a  one  as 
the  Abbe  de  Veze,  lives  like  a  child  with  its  mother ; 
for  the  Church,  my  dear  Monsieur  Godefroid,  is  a  good 
mother.  Well,  a  man  can  be  a  priest  without  the  ton- 
sure ;  all  priests  are  not  in  orders.  To  vow  one's  self  to 
good,  that  is  imitating  a  true  priest ;  it  is  obedience  to 
God.  I  am  not  preaching  to  you  ;  I  am  not  trying  to 
convert  3'ou  ;  I  am  explaining  our  lives  to  you." 

"Instruct  me,  madame,"  said  Godefroid,  deeply  im- 
pressed, "  so  that  I  may  not  fail  in  any  of  your  rules." 

''  That  would  be  hard  upon  you ;  you  will  learn  them 
by  degrees.  Never  speak  here  of  your  misfortunes ; 
they  are  slight  compared  to  the  catastrophes  b}"  which 
the  lives  of  those  you  are  now  among  were  blasted." 


48  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

While  speaking  thus,  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  drew 
her  needle  and  set  her  stitches  with  unbroken  regu- 
larit}' ;  but  here  she  paused,  raised  her  head,  and  looked 
at  Godefroid.  She  saw  him  charmed  b}^  the  penetrating 
sweetness  of  her  voice,  which  possessed,  let  us  sa}-  it 
here,  an  apostolic  unction.  The  sick  soul  contemplated 
with  admiration  the  truly  extraordinary  phenomenon 
presented  by  this  woman,  whose  face  was  now  resplen- 
dent. Ros}^  tints  were  spreading  on  the  waxen  cheeks, 
her  e3'es  shone,  the  youthfulness  of  her  soul  changed 
the  light  wrinkles  into  gracious  lines,  and  all  about  her 
solicited  affection.  Godefroid  in  that  one  moment 
measured  the  gulf  that  separated  this  woman  from 
common  sentiments.  He  saw  her  inaccessible  on  a 
peak  to  which  religion  had  led  her ;  and  he  was  still 
too  worldl}^  not  to  be  keenl}-  piqued,  and  to  long  to 
plunge  through  the  gulf  and  up  to  the  summit  on  which 
she  stood,  and  stand  beside  her.  Giving  himself  up  to 
this  desire,  he  related  to  her  all  the  mistakes  of  his 
life,  and  much  that  he  could  not  tell  at  Mongenod's, 
where  his  confidence  had  been  confined  to  his  actual 
situation. 

"Poor  child!" 

That  exclamation,  falling  now  and  then  from  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie's  lips  as  he  went  on,  dropped  like  balm 
upon  the  heart  of  the  sufferer. 

"  What  can  I  substitute  for  so  many  hopes  betrayed, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  49 

so  much  affection  wasted?"  he  asked,  looking  at  his 
hostess,  who  had  now  grown  thoughtful.  "  I  came 
here,"  he  resumed,  "to  reflect  and  choose  a  course  of 
action.     I  have  lost  my  mother  ;  will  you  replace  her?" 

''  Will  you,"  she  said,  "  show  a  son's  obedience?" 

"Yes,  if  you  will  have  the  tenderness  that  com- 
mands it." 

"  I  will  tr}^,"  she  said. 

Godefroid  put  out  his  hand  to  take  that  of  his  hos- 
tess, who  gave  it  to  him,  guessing  his  intentions.  He 
carried  it  respectfully  to  his  lips.  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie's  hand  was  exquisitely  beautiful,  —  without 
a  wrinkle ;  neither  fat  nor  thin ;  white  enough  to  be 
the  envy  of  all  young  women,  and  shapely  enough  for 
the  model  of  a  sculptor.  Godefroid  had  already  ad- 
mired those  hands,  conscious  of  their  harmony  with  the 
spell  of  her  voice,  and  the  celestial  blue  of  her  glance. 

"  Wait  a  moment,"  said  Madame  de  la  Chanterie, 
rising  and  going  into  her  own  room. 

Godefroid  was  keenly  excited ;  he  did  not  know  to 
what  class  of  ideas  her  movement  was  to  be  attributed. 
His  perplexity  did  not  last  long,  for  she  presently 
returned  with  a  book  in  her  hand. 

"Here,  my  dear  child,"  she  said,  "  are  the  prescrip- 
tions of  a  great  phj'sician  of  souls.  When  the  things 
of  ordinar}^  life  have  not  given  us  the  happiness  we 
expected  of  them,  we  must  seek  for  happiness  in  a 

4 


50  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

higher  life.  Here  is  the  key  of  a  new  world.  Read 
night  and  morning  a  chapter  of  this  book ;  but  bring 
3'oiir  full  attention  to  bear  on  what  3'ou  read ;  study 
the  words  as  3'ou  would  a  foreign  language.  At  the 
end  of  a  month  3'ou  will  be  another  man.  It  is  now 
twent3'  years  that  I  have  read  a  chapter  ever3'  da3^ ; 
and  m3^  three  friends,  Messieurs  Nicolas,  Alain,  and 
Joseph,  would  no  more  fail  in  that  practice  than  they 
would  fail  in  getting  up  and  going  to  bed.  Do  as  they 
do  for  love  of  God,  for  love  of  me,"  she  said,  with  a 
divine  serenit3%  an  august  confidence. 

Godefroid  turned  over  the  book  and  read  upon  its 
back  in  gilt  letters.  Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ.  The 
simplicit3"  of  tliis  old  woman,  her  3'outhful  candor,  her 
certainty  of  doing  a  good  deed,  confounded  the  ex- 
dandv'.  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  face  wore  a  rap- 
turous expression,  and  her  attitude  was  that  of  a 
woman  who  was  offering  a  hundred  thousand  francs 
to  a  merchant  on  the  verge  of  bankruptc3\ 

''I  have  used  that  volume,"  she  said,  "for  twent3'- 
six  3'ears.  God  grant  its  touch  ma3^  be  contagious. 
Go  now  and  bu3^  me  another  cop3^ ;  for  this  is  the  hour 
when  persons  come  here  who  must  not  be  seen." 

Godefroid  bowed  and  went  to  his  room,  where  he 
flung  the  book  upon  the  table,  exclaiming,  — 

"  Poor,  good  woman  !     Well,  so  be  it !  " 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  51 


V. 


THE    INFLUENCE    OF   BOOKS. 

The  book,  like  all  books  frequently  read,  opened  in 
a  particular  place.  Godefroid  sat  down  as  if  to  put  his 
ideas  in  order,  for  lie  had  gone  through  more  emotion 
during  this  one  morning  than  he  had  often  done  in  the 
agitated  months  of  his  life ;  but  above  all,  his  curiosity 
was  keenly  excited.  Letting  his  ej'es  fall  by  chance, 
as  people  will  when  their  souls  are  launched  in  medi- 
tation, the}'  rested  mechanically  on  the  two  open  pages 
of  the  book ;  almost  unconsciously  he  read  the  follow- 
ing heading :  — 

CHAPTER  XII. 

THE    ROYAL   WAY   OF     THE    HOLY   CROSS. 

He  took  up  the  book  ;  a  sentence  of  that  noble  chap- 
ter caught  his  eye  like  a  flash  of  light :  — 

"  He  has  walked  before  thee,  bearing  his  cross ;  he  died 
for  thee,  that  thou  mightest  bear  thy  cross,  and  be  glad 
to  die  upon  it. 

"  Go  where  thou  wilt,  seek  what  thou  wilt,  never  canst 
thou  find  a  nobler,  surer  path  than  the  royal  way  of  the 
holy  cross. 


52  The  Brotlierhood  of  Consolation. 

"  Dispose  and  order  all  things  according  to  thy  desires  and 
thine  own  judgment  and  still  thou  shalt  find  trials  to  suffer, 
whether  thou  wilt  or  no ;  and  so  the  cross  is  there,  be  it  pain 
of  body  or  pain  of  mind. 

"  Sometimes  God  will  seem  to  leave  thee,  sometimes  men 
will  harass  thee.  But,  far  w^orse,  thou  wilt  find  thyseK  a  bur- 
den to  thyself,  and  no  remedy  will  deliver  thee,  no  consolation 
comfort  thee  :  until  it  pleases  God  to  end  thy  trouble  thou 
must  bear  it ;  for  it  is  God's  will  that  we  suffer  without 
consolation,  that  we  may  go  to  him  without  one  backward 
look,  humble  through  tribulation." 

"  What  a  strange  book  !  "  thought  Godefroid,  turning 
over  the  leaves.  Then  his  e3'es  lighted  on  the  follow- 
ing words :  — 

"  When  thou  hast  reached  the  height  of  finding  all  afflic- 
tions sweet,  since  they  have  made  thee  love  the  love  of  Jesus 
Christ,  then  know  thyself  happy ;  for  thou  hast  found  thy 
paradise  in  this  world." 

Anno3'ed  by  this  simplicity  (the  characteristic  of 
strength),  angry  at  being  foiled  hy  a  book,  he  closed 
the  volume  ;  but  even  then  he  saw,  in  letters  of  gold  on 
the  green  morocco  cover,  the  words  :  — 

SEEK    THAT    WHICH    IS    ETERNAL,    AND    THAT    ONLY. 

"  Have  the}'  found  it  here?  "  he  asked  himself. 

He  went  out  to  buy  the  handsomest  copy  he  could 
find  of  the  "  Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ"  thinking  that 
Madame   de   la    Chanterie   would   wish  to    read    her 


The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation.  53 

chapter  that  night.  When  he  reached  the  street  he 
stood  a  moment  near  the  door,  uncertain  which  wa}-  to 
take  and  debating  in  what  direction  he  was  hkel}*  to 
find  a  bookseller.  As  he  stood  there  he  heard  the 
heavy  sound  of  the  massive  porte-cochere  closing. 

Two  men  were  leaving  the  hotel  de  la  Chanterie.  If 
the  reader  has  fully  understood  the  character  of  this 
old  house  he  will  know  that  it  was  one  of  the  ancient 
mansions  of  the  olden  time.  Manon,  herself,  when  she 
called  Godefroid  that  morning,  had  asked  him,  smiling, 
how  he  had  slept  in  the  hotel  de  la  Chanterie. 

Godefroid  followed  the  two  men  without  the  slightest 
intention  of  watching  them ;  the}^  took  him  for  an 
accidental  passer,  and  spoke  in  tones  which  enabled 
him  to  hear  them  distinctly  in  those  lonely  streets. 

The  two  men  passed  along  the  rue  Massillon  beside 
the  church  and  crossed  the  open  space  in  front  of  it. 

"  Well,  you  see,  old  man,  it  is  eas}'  enough  to  catch 
their  sous.  Say  what  they  want  you  to  say,  that 's 
all." 

"  But  we  owe  money." 

''To  whom?" 

'^  To  that  lady  — " 

"  I  'd  like  to  see  that  old  bod}'  try  to  get  it ;  I  'd  —  " 
•  "You'd  pay  her." 

"  Well,  you  're  right,  for  if  I  paid  her  I'd  get  more 
another  time." 


54  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"  Would  n't  it  be  better  to  do  as  they  advise,  and 
build  up  a  good  business  ?  " 

"Pooh!" 

"  But  she  said  she  would  get  some  one  to  lend  us 
the  money." 

"  Then  we  should  have  to  give  up  the  life  of —  " 

^'  Well,  I  'd  rather  ;  I  'm  sick  of  it ;  it  is  n't  being  a 
man  at  all  to  be  drunk  half  one's  time." 

"  Yes^  but  you  know  the  abbe  turned  his  back  on  old 
Marin  the  other  da}^ ;  he  refused  him  everything." 

"  Because  old  Marin  tried  to  swindle,  and  nobody 
can  succeed  in  that  but  millionnaires." 

Just  then  the  two  men,  whose  dress  seemed  to  show 
that  the}"  were  foremen  in  some  workshop,  turned 
abruptl}'  round  towards  the  place  Maubert  by  the 
bridge  of  the  Hotel-Dieu.  Godefroid  stepped  aside  to 
let  them  pass.  Seeing  him  so  close  behind  them  they 
looked  rather  anxiously  at  each  other,  and  their  faces 
expressed  a  regret  for  having  spoken. 

Godefroid  was  the  more  interested  by  this  con- 
versation because  it  reminded  him  of  the  scene  between 
the  Abbe  de  Veze  and  the  workman  the  day  of  his  first 
visit. 

Thinking  over  this  circumstance,  he  went  as  far  as 
a  bookseller's  in  the  rue  Saint-Jacques,  whence  he 
returned  with  a  very  handsome  copy  of  the  finest 
edition  published  in  France  of  the  "  Imitation  of  Jesus 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  55 

Christ."     Walking  slowh*  back,  in  order  that  he  might 
arrive  exacth'  at  the  dinner  hour,  he  recalled  his  own 
sensations  during  this  morning  and  he  was  conscious  of 
a  new  impulse  in  his  soul.     He  was  seized  b}'  a  sudden 
and  deep  curiosity',  but  his  curiosity  paled  before  an 
inexplicable  desire.     He  was  drawn  to  Madame  do  la 
Chanterie  ;  he  felt  the  keenest  desire  to  attach  himself 
to  her,  to  devote  himself  to  her,  to  please  her,  to  deserve 
her  praise  :  in  short,  he  felt  the  first  emotions  of  platonic 
love ;  he  saw  glimpses  of  the  untold  grandeur  of  that 
soul,  and  he  longed  to  know  it  in  its  entirety.     He  grew 
impatient  to  enter  the  inner  lives  of  these  pure  Catholics. 
In  that  small  compan}'  of  faithful  souls,  the  majesty  of 
practical  religion  was  so  thoroughly  blended  with  all  that 
is   most  majestic  in  a  French  woman  that  Godefroid 
resolved  to  leave  no  stone  unturned  to  make  himself 
accepted  as  a  true  member  of  the  little  bod}-.     These 
feelings  would  have  been  unnaturally  sudden  in  a  bus}' 
Parisian  eagerly  occupied  with  life,  but  Godefroid  was, 
as  we  have  seen,  in  the  position  of  a  drowning  man  who 
catches  at  every  floating  branch   thinking    it  a  solid 
sta}',  and  his  soul,  ploughed  and  furrowed  with  trial, 
was  read}'  to  receive  all  seed. 

He  found   the    four   friends   in   the    salon,    and    he 
presented  the  book  to  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  sa3'ing  ; 
"I  did  not  like  to  deprive  you  of  it  to-night." 
"  God  grant,"  she  said,  smiling,  as  she  looked  at  the 


56  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

magnificent  volume,  "  that  this  may  be  3'our  last  excess 
of  elegance." 

Looking  at  the  clothes  of  the  four  men  present  and 
observing  how  in  every  particular  they  were  reduced 
to  mere  utility  and  neatness,  and  seeing,  too,  how 
rigorousl}'  the  same  principle  was  applied  to  all  the 
details  of  the  house,  Godefroid  understood  the  value  of 
the  reproach  so  courteousl}'  made  to  him. 

"  Madame,"  he  said, ''  the  persons  whom  3'ou  obliged 
this  morning  are  scoundrels ;  I  overheard,  without 
intending  it,  what  they  said  to  each  other  when  they 
left  the  house ;  it  was  full  of  the  basest  ingratitude." 

''  They  were  the  two  locksmiths  of  the  rue  Mouffe- 
tard,"  said  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  to  Monsieur 
Nicolas;  ''that  is  your  aflTair." 

"  The  fish  gets  awa}"  more  than  once  before  it  is 
caught,"  said  Monsieur  Alain,  laughing. 

The  perfect  indifference  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie 
on  hearing  of  the  immediate  ingratitude  of  persons  to 
whom  she  had,  no  doubt,  given  money,  surprised 
Godefroid,  who  became  thoughtful. 

The  dinner  was  enlivened  by  Monsieur  Alain  and 
Monsieur  Joseph  ;  but  Monsieur  Nicolas  remained  quiet, 
sad,  and  cold ;  he  bore  on  his  features  the  ineffaceable 
imprint  of  some  bitter  grief,  some  eternal  sorrow.  Ma- 
dame de  la  Chanterie  paid  equal  attentions  to  all. 
Godefroid  felt  himself  observed  b}- these  persons,  whose 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  57 

prudence  equalled  their  piety ;  his  vanit}'  led  him  to 
imitate  their  reseiTe,  and  he  measured  his  words. 

This  first  day  was  much  more  interesting  than  those 
which  succeeded  it.  Godefroid,  who  found  himself  set 
aside  from  all  the  serious  conferences,  was  obliged, 
during  several  hours  in  mornings  and  evenings  when 
he  was  left  wholly  to  himself,  to  have  recourse  to 
the  "  Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ;"  and  he  ended  b}' 
studying  that  boolv  as  a  man  studies  a  book  when  he 
has  but  one,  or  is  a  prisoner.  A  book  is  then  like  a 
woman  with  whom  we  live  in  solitude ;  we  must 
either  hate  or  adore  that  woman,  and,  in  like  manner, 
we  must  either  enter  into  the  soul  of  the  author  or  not 
read  ten  lines  of  his  book. 

Now,  it  is  impossible  not  to  be  impressed  b}'  the 
"Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ,"  which  is  to  dogma  what 
action  is  to  thought.  Catholicism  vibrates  in  it,  pulses, 
breathes,  and  lives,  body  to  body,  with  human  life. 
The  book  is  a  sure  friend.  It  speaks  to  all  passions, 
all  difficulties,  even  worldlj"  ones ;  it  solves  all  prob- 
lems ;  it  is  more  eloquent  than  any  preacher,  for  its 
voice  is  your  own,  it  is  the  voice  within  3'our  soul,  yov\ 
hear  it  with  your  spirit.  It  is,  in  short,  the  Gospel 
translated,  adapted  to  all  ages,  the  summit  and  crest  of 
all  human  situations.  It  is  extraordinar}'  that  the 
Church  has  never  canonized  Thomas  a  Kempis,  for  the 
Divine  Spirit  evidentlj'  inspired  his  pen. 


58  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

For  Godefroid,  the  hotel  de  la  Chanterie  now  held  a 
woman  and  a  book ;  da}'  by  day  he  loved  the  woman 
more ;  he  discovered  flowers  buried  beneath  the  snows 
of  winter-  in  her  heart ;  he  had  glimpses  of  the  joj's  of 
a  sacred  friendship  which  religion  permits,  on  which  the 
angels  smile  ;  a  friendship  which  here  united  these  five 
persons  and  against  which  no  evil  could  prevail. 

This  is  a  sentiment  higher  than  all  others  ;  a  love  of 
soul  to  soul,  resembling  those  rarest  flowers  born  on  the 
highest  peaks  of  earth  ;  a  love  of  which  a  few  examples 
are  offered  to  humanity'  from  age  to  age,  b}-  which 
lovers  are  sometimes  bound  together  in  one  being,  and 
which  explains  those  faithful  attachments  which  are 
otherwise  inexplicable  b}'  the  laws  of  the  world.  It  is  a 
bond  without  disappointment,  without  misunderstand- 
ings, without  vanit}',  without  strife,  without  even  con- 
tradictions ;  so  completely  are  the  moral  natures  blended 
into  one. 

This  sentiment,  vast,  infinite,  born  of  catholic 
charity,  Godefroid  foresaw  with  all  its  joj's.  At  times 
he  could  not  believe  the  spectacle  before  his  e3'es,  and 
he  sought  for  reasons  to  explain  the  sublime  friendship 
of  these  five  persons,  wondering  in  his  heart  to  find  true 
Catholics,  true  Christians  of  the  earl}^  Church,  in  the 
Paris  of  1835. 


Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  59 


VI. 


THE    BUSINESS    OF   THE    HOUSE    OF    CHANTERIE   AND 
COMPANY. 

Within  a  week  after  his  arrival  Godefroid  had  seen 
such  a  concourse  of  persons,  he  had  overheard  fragments 
of  conversation  relating  to  so  many  serious  topics,  that 
he  began  to  perceive  an  enormous  activity'  in  the  lives 
of  the  five  inmates  of  the  house.  He  noticed  that  none 
of  them  slept  more  than  five  hours  at  the  most. 

They  had  all  made,  in  some  sort,  a  first  da}',  before 
the  second  breakfast.  During  that  time  strangers 
came  and  went,  bringing  or  carr3'ing  away  mone}', 
sometimes  in  considerable  sums.  A  messenger  from 
the  Mongenod  counting-room  often  came,  —  always 
very  early  in  the  morning,  so  that  his  errand  might  not 
interfere  with  the  business  of  the  bank. 

One  evening  Monsieur  Mongenod  came  himself,  and 
Godefroid  noticed  that  he  showed  to  Monsieur  Alain  a 
certain  filial  familiarit}'  added  to  the  profound  respect 
which  he  testified  to  the  three  other  lodgers  of  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie. 


60  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

On  that  evening  the  banker  merely  put  a  few  matter- 
of-fact  questions  to  Godefroid  :  "  Was  he  comfortable? 
Did  he  intend  to  stay  ?  "  etc.,  —  at  the  same  time  advis- 
ing him  to  persevere  in  his  plan. 

"  I  need  onl^'  one  thing  to  make  me  contented,"  said 
Godefroid. 

"  What  is  that?"  asked  the  banker. 

"  An  occupation." 

"An  occupation!"  remarked  the  Abbe  de  Veze. 
"  Then  you  have  changed  your  mind?  I  thought  j'ou 
came  to  our  cloister  for  rest." 

"  Rest,  without  the  pra3'ers  that  enlivened  mon- 
asteries, without  the  meditation  which  peopled  the 
Thebaids,  becomes  a  disease,"  said  Monsieur  Joseph, 
sententiousl}'. 

••'  Learn  book-keeping,"  said  Monsieur  Mongenod, 
with  a  smile  ;  "  you  might  become  in  a  few  months 
\Qvy  useful  to  my  friends  here." 

"  Oh  !  with  pleasure,"  cried  Godefroid. 

The  next  da}'  was  Sunda}' ;  Madame  de  la  Chanterie 
requested  him  to  give  her  his  arm  to  high  mass. 

"  It  is,"  she  said,  ''  the  only  coercion  I  shall  put  upon 
you.  Several  times  during  the  past  week  I  have  wished 
to  speak  to  you  of  religion,  but  it  did  not  seem  to  me 
that  the  time  had  come.  You  would  find  plenty  of 
occupation  if  3'ou  shared  our  beliefs,  for  then  you  would 
share  our  labors  as  well." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  61 

During  mass  Godefroid  noticed  the  fervor  of 
Messieurs  Nicolas,  Joseph,  and  Alain;  and  as  during 
the  last  few  da3's  he  had  also  noticed  their  superiority 
and  intelligence,  and  the  vast  extent  of  their  knowl- 
edge, he  concluded,  when  he  saw  how  they  humbled 
themselves,  that  the  Catholic  religion  had  secrets  which 
had  hitherto  escaped  him. 

"  After  all,"  he  said  to  himself,  "it  is  the  religion  of 
Bossuet,  Pascal,  Racine,  Saint-Louis,  Louis  XIV., 
Raffaelle,  Michel-Angelo,  Ximenes,  Bayard,  du  Gues- 
clin  ;  and  how  could  I,  weakling  that  I  am,  compare 
m3'self  to  those  intellects,  those  statesmen,  those  poets, 
those  heroes  ?  " 

If  there  were  not  some  real  instruction  in  these 
minor  details  it  would  be  imprudent  to  dwell  upon 
them  in  these  days ;  but  they  are  indispensable  to  the 
interests  of  this  histor}',  in  which  the  present  public 
will  be  none  too  read}'  to  believe,  and  which  presents 
at  the  outset  a  fact  that  is  almost  ridiculous,  — 
namel}',  the  empire  which  a  woman  of  sixt}^  obtained 
over  a  young  man  disappointed  with  the  world. 

"You  did  not  pray  at  all,"  said  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  to  Godefroid  as  they  left  the  portal  of 
Notre-Dame  ;  "  not  for  an}'  one,  —  not  even  for  the  soul 
of  3'our  mother." 

Godefroid  colored  and  said  nothing. 

"  Will  you  do  me  the  favor,"  continued  Madame  de 


62  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

la  Chanterie,  "  to  go  to  3'Our  room  and  not  come  into  tlie 
salon  for  an  hour?  You  can  meditate,  if  you  love  me, 
on  the  first  chapter  in  the  third  book  of  the  '  Imitation  ' 
—  the  one  entitled  :  '  Of  inward  communing.'  " 

Godefroid  bowed  stiffly  and  went  to  his  room. 

"The  devil  take  them!"  he  exclaimed  to  himself, 
giving  wa}^  to  downright  anger.  "  What  do  they  want 
with  me  here  ?  What  is  all  this  traffic  they  are  carr}'- 
ing  on?  Pooh  !  all  women,  even  pious  ones,  are  up  to 
the  same  tricks.  If  Madame  "  (giving  her  the  name  by 
which  her  lodgers  spoke  of  her)  "  wants  me  out  of  the 
way  it  is  because  they  are  plotting  something  against 
me." 

With  that  thought  in  his  mind  he  tried  to  look  from 
his  window  into  that  of  the  salon  ;  but  the  situation  of 
the  rooms  did  not  allow  it.  He  went  down  one  flight, 
and  then  returned,  — reflecting  that  according  to  the 
rigid  principles  of  the  house  he  should  be  dismissed  if 
discovered  spying.  To  lose  the  respect  of  those  five 
persons  seemed  to  him  as  serious  as  public  dishonor. 

He  waited  three  quarters  of  an  hour  ;  then  he  resolved 
to  surprise  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  come  upon  her 
suddenly'  before  she  expected  him.  He  invented  a  lie 
to  excuse  himself,  saying  that  his  watch  was  wrong  ;  for 
which  purpose  he  set  it  on  twent}'  minutes.  Then  he 
went  downstairs,  making  no  noise,  reached  the  door  of 
the  salon,  and  opened  it  abruptly. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  63 

He  saw  a  man,  still  young,  but  already  celebrated, 
a  poet,  whom  he  had  frequenth^  met  in  societ}-,  Victor 
de  Vernisset,  on  his  knees  before  Madame  de  la  Chan- 
terie,  and  kissing  the  hem  of  her  dress.  If  the  sky  had 
fallen,  and  shivered  to  atoms  like  glass,  as  the  ancients 
thought  it  was,  Godefroid  could  not  have  been  more 
astonished.  Shocking  thoughts  came  into  his  mind, 
and  then  a  reaction  more  terrible  still  when,  before  the 
sarcasm  he  was  about  to  utter  had  left  his  lips,  he  saw 
Monsieur  Alain  in  a  corner  of  the  room  counting  out 
bank-notes. 

In  an  instant  Vernisset  was  on  his  feet,  and  the 
worthy  Alain  looked  thunderstruck.  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie,  on  her  part,  gave  Godefroid  a  look  which 
petrified  him  ;  for  the  twofold  expression  on  the  face  of 
the  visitor  had  not  escaped  him. 

"  Monsieur  is  one  of  us,"  she  said  to  the  3'oung  poet, 
with  a  sign  towards  Godefroid. 

"Then  3'ou  are  a  happy  man,  my  dear  fellow,"  said 
Vernisset ;  "  3'ou  are  saved  !  But,  madame,"  he  added, 
turning  to  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  "if  all  Paris  had 
seen  me,  I  should  rejoice  in  it.  Nothing  can  ever  mark 
my  gratitude  to  you.  I  am  3'ours  forever ;  I  belong  to 
you  utterly.  Command  me  as  3'ou  will  and  I  obey.  I 
owe  you  my  life,  and  it  is  yours." 

"  Well,  well,  3'oung  man ! "  said  the  kind  Alain, 
"then  be  wise,  be  virtuous,  —  only,  loorJc ;  but  do  not 


64  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

attack  religion  in  your  books.  Moreover,  remember 
that  3'0ii  owe  a  debt." 

And  he  handed  him  an  envelope  thick  with  the  bank- 
notes he  had  counted  out.  The  tears  were  in  Victor  de 
Vernisset's  e3^es ;  he  kissed  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's 
hand  respectfulh'  and  went  awa}',  after  shaking  hands 
with  Monsieur  Alain  and  Godefroid. 

''You  have  not  obej^ed  madame,'*  said  the  goodman 
Alain  solemnl}^  with  a  sad  expression  on  his  face  that 
Godefroid  had  never  before  seen  there;  "and  that  is 
a  great  wrong  ;  if  it  happens  again  we  must  part.  This 
may  seem  hard  to  you  after  we  had  begun  to  give  you 
our  confidence." 

"My  dear  Alain,"  said  Madame  de  la  Chanterie, 
"  have  the  kindness  for  my  sake  to  say  no  more  about 
this  piece  of  thoughtlessness.  We  ought  not  to  ask 
too  much  of  a  new  arrival,  who  has  been  spared  great 
misfortunes  and  knows  nothing  of  religion ;  and  who, 
moreover,  has  only  an  excessive  curiosit}'  about  our 
vocation,  and  does  not  j'et  believe  in  us." 

"Forgive  me,  madame,"  said  Godefroid;  "I  do 
desire,  from  this  time  forth,  to  be  worthy  of  you.  I 
will  submit  to  any  trial  you  think  necessary  before  ini- 
tiating me  into  the  secrets  of  your  work ;  and  if  the 
Abbe  de  Veze  will  undertake  to  instruct  me  I  will  listen 
to  him,  soul  and  mind." 

These  words  made  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  so  happy 


The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation,  65 

that  a  faint  color  stole  upon  her  cheeks.  She  took 
Godefroid's  hand  and  pressed  it^  then  she  said,  with 
strange  emotion,  "It  is  well." 

That  evening,  after  dinner,  visitors  came  in  :  a  vicar- 
general  of  the  diocese  of  Paris,  two  canons,  two  former 
maj'ors  of  Paris,  and  one  of  the  ladies  who  distributed 
the  charities  of  Notre-Dame.  No  cards  were  played ; 
but  the  conversation  was  ga}',  without  being  vapid. 

A  visit  which  surprised  Godefroid  greatW  was  that 
of  the  Comtesse  de  Cinq-CA'gne,  one  of  the  highest  per- 
sonages in  aristocratic  societ}',  whose  salon  was  inac- 
cessible to  the  bourgeoisie  and  to  parvenus.  The 
presence  of  this  great  lad}^  in  Madame  de  la  Chan- 
terie's  salon  was  sufficiently  surprising  :  but  the  manner 
in  which  the  two  women  met  and  treated  each  other 
seemed  to  Godefroid  inexplicable ;  for  it  showed  the 
closest  intimac}^  and  a  constant  intercourse  which  gave 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  an  added  value  in  his  eyes. 
Madame  de  Cinq-C3'gne  was  gracious  and  affectionate 
in  manner  to  the  four  friends  of  her  friend,  and  showed 
the  utmost  respect  to  Monsieur  Nicolas. 

We  may  see  here  how  social  vanities  still  governed 
Godefroid ;  for  up  to  this  visit  of  Madame  de  Cinq- 
Cygne  he  was  still  undecided ;  but  he  now  resolved  to 
give  himself  up,  with  or  without  conviction,  to  whatever 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  her  friends  mioht  exact  of 
him,  in  order  to  get  affiUated  with  their  order  and  ini- 

5 


GQ  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

tiated  into  their  secrets,  assuring  himself  that  in  that 
way  he  should  find  a  career. 

The  next  da}^  he  went  to  a  book-keeper  whom  Ma- 
dame de  la  Chanterie  recommended,  and  arranged  with 
him  the  hours  at  which  the}'^  should  work  together.  His 
whole  time  was  now  emplo3'ed.  The  Abbe  de  V^ze 
instructed  him  in  the  mornings  ;  he  was  two  hours  a 
day  with  the  book-keeper ;  and  he  spent  the  rest  of  his 
time  between  breakfast  and  dinner  in  doing  imaginary 
commercial  accounts  which  his  master  required  him  to 
write  at  home. 

Some  time  passed  thus,  during  which  Godefroid  felt 
the  charm  of  a  life  in  which  each  hour  has  its  own  em- 
ployment. The  recurrence  of  a  settled  work  at  settled 
moments,  regular! t}'  of  action,  is  the  secret  of  man}' 
a  happ3^  life  ;  and  it  proves  how  deeply  the  founders  of 
religious  orders  had  meditated  on  the  nature  of  man. 
Godefroid,  who  had  made  up  his  mind  to  listen  to  the 
Abbe  de  Veze,  began  to  have  serious  thoughts  of  a 
future  life,  and  to  find  how  little  he  knew  of  the  real 
gravit}^  of  religious  questions. 

Moreover,  from  day  to  day  Madame  de  la  Chanterie, 
with  whom  he  always  remained  for  an  hour  after  the 
second  breakfast,  allowed  him  to  discover  the  treasures 
that  were  in  her ;  he  knew  then  that  he  never  could 
have  imagined  a  loving-kindness  so  broad  and  so  com- 
plete.   A  woman  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  apparent 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  67 

age  no  longer  has  the  pettiness  of  \'Ounger  women. 
She  is  a  friend  who  offers  you  all  feminine  refinements, 
who  displaj's  the  graces,  the  choice  attractions  which 
nature  inspires  in  a  woman  for  man ;  she  gives  them, 
and  no  longer  sells  them.  Such  a  woman  is  either 
detestable  or  perfect ;  for  her  gifts  are  either  not 
of  the  flesh  or  the}'  are  worthless.  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  was  perfect.  She  seemed  never  to  have  had 
a  youth  ;  her  glance  never  told  of  a  past.  Godefroid's 
curiosity  was  far  from  being  appeased  b}-  a  closer  and 
more  intimate  knowledge  of  this  sublime  nature  ;  the 
discoveries  of  each  succeeding  day  onl}-  redoubled  his 
desire  to  learn  the  anterior  life  of  a  woman  whom  he 
now  thought  a  saint.  Had  she  ever  loved?  Had  she 
been  a  wife,  —  a  mother?  Nothing  about  her  was  char- 
acteristic of  an  old  maid ;  she  displa3-ed  all  the  graces 
of  a  well-born  woman  ;  and  an  observer  would  perceive 
in  her  robust  health,  in  the  extraordinary  phenomena 
of  her  physical  preservation,  a  divine  life,  and  a  species 
of  ignorance  of  the  earthly  existence. 

Except  the  ga}^  and  cheery  goodman  Alain,  all  these 
persons  had  suffered  ;  but  Monsieur  Nicolas  himself 
seemed  to  give  the  palm  of  martyrdom  to  Madame  de 
la  Chanterie.  Nevertheless,  the  memor}'  of  her  sorrows 
was  so  restrained  by  religious  resignation,  b}'  her  secret 
avocations,  that  she  seemed  to  have  been  always 
happy. 


68  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

"  You  are  the  life  of  your  friends,"  Godefroid  said  to 
her  one  day  ;  "  you  are  the  tie  that  unites  them,  —  the 
house-mother,  as  it  were,  of  some  great  work ;  and,  as 
we  are  all  mortal,  I  ask  m^'self  sometimes  what  3'our 
association  would  become  without  3'ou." 

"  That  is  what  frightens  the  others  ;  but  Providence, 
to  whom  we  owe  our  new  book-keeper,"  she  said,  smil- 
ing, "  will  provide.     Besides,  I  am  on  the  look-out." 

"Will  your  new  book-keeper  soon  be  allowed  to  work 
at  your  business?"  asked  Godefroid. 

"That  depends  on  himself,"  she  answered,  smiling. 
"He  must  be  sincerely  rehgious,  truly  pious,  without 
the  least  self-interest,  not  concerned  about  the  riches  of 
our  house,  able  to  rise  above  all  petty  social  considera- 
tions on  the  two  wings  which  God  has  given  us." 

"What  are  they?" 

"Singleness  of  mind  and  purity,"  replied  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie.  "  Your  ignorance  shows  me  that  3'ou 
have  neglected  the  reading  of  our  book,"  she  added, 
laughing  at  the  innocent  trick  she  had  plaj'ed  to  know 
if  Godefroid  had  read  the  "Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ." 
"And,  lastly,"  she  went  on,  "  fill  3'Our  soul  with  Saint 
Paul's  epistle  upon  Charity.  When  that  is  done,"  she 
added,  with  a  sublime  look,  "it  will  not  be  3'ou  who 
belong  to  us,  we  shall  belong  to  you,  and  j'ou  will  be 
able  to  count  up  greater  ri(;hes  than  the  sovereigns  of 
this  world  possess  ;   you  will  enjoy  as  we  enjoy  ;  j'es, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  69 

let  me  tell  you  (if  3'ou  remember  the  '  Arabian  Nights ') 
that  the  treasures  of  Aladdin  are  notliing  to  those  we 
possess.  And  so  for  the  last  year  we  have  not  sufficed 
for  our  affairs,  and  we  needed,  as  you  see,  a  book- 
keeper." 

While  speaking,  she  studied  Godefroid's  face  ;  he,  on 
his  part,  did  not  know  how  to  take  this  extraordinary 
confidence.  But  as  the  scene  in  the  counting-room  at 
Mongenod's  came  often  to  his  mind,  he  hovered  be- 
tween doubt  and  belief. 

"Ah,  3'ou  will  be  ver}^  happ}' !  "  she  said. 

Godefroid  was  so  consumed  with  curiosity  that  from 
this  moment  he  determined  to  break  through  the  reserve 
of  one  of  the  four  friends  and  question  him.  Now,  the 
one  to  whom  he  felt  the  most  drawn,  and  who  seemed 
naturallj'  to  excite  the  sympathies  of  persons  of  all 
classes,  was  the  kind,  ga}',  simple  Monsieur  Alain.  By 
what  strange  path  could  Providence  have  led  a  being 
so  guileless  into  this  monastery  without  a  lock,  where 
recluses  of  both  sexes  lived  beneath  a  rule  in  the  midst 
of  Paris,  in  absolute  freedom,  as  though  they  were 
guarded  by  the  sternest  of  superiors?  What  drama, 
what  event,  had  made  him  leave  his  own  road  in  life, 
and  take  this  path  among  the  sorrows  of  the  great 
city? 

Godefroid  resolved  to  ask. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation* 


VII. 


MONSIEUR    ALAIN   TELLS    HIS    SECRETS. 

One  evening  Godefroid  determined  to  pa}'  a  visit  to 
his  neighbor  on  the  floor  above  him,  with  the  intention 
of  satisfying  a  curiosity  more  excited  b}-  the  apparent 
impossibilit}'  of  a  catastrophe  in  such  an  existence  than 
it  would  have  been  under  the  expectation  of  discover- 
ing some  terrible  episode  in  the  life  of  a  corsair. 

At  the  words  "  Come  in !  "  given  in  answer  to  two 
raps  struck  discreet!}'  on  the  door,  Godefroid  turned 
the  key  which  was  in  the  lock  and  found  Monsieur 
Alain  sitting  by  the  fire  reading,  before  he  went  to 
bed,  his  accustomed  chapter  in  the  "Imitation  of  Jesus 
Christ, ''  b}^  the  light  of  two  wax-candles,  each  protected 
by  a  movable  green  shade,  such  as  whist-pla3'ers  use. 

The  goodman  wore  trousers  a  pied  and  his  graj' 
camlet  dressing-gown.  His  feet  were  at  a  level  with 
tlie  fire,  resting  on  a  cushion  done  in  worsted-work,  as 
were  his  slippers,  by  Madame  de  la  Chanterie.  The  fine 
head  of  the  old  man,  without  other  covering  than  its 
crown  of  white  hair,  almost  like  that  of  a  monk,  stood 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  71 

out  in  clear  relief  against  the  brown  background  of  an 
enormous  armchair. 

Monsieur  Alain  gentl}'  laid  his  book,  which  was  much 
worn  at  the  corners,  on  a  little  table  with  twisted  legs, 
and  signed  to  the  3'oung  man  to  take  another  chair, 
removing  as  he  did  so  a  pair  of  spectacles  which  were 
hanging  on  the  end  of  his  nose. 

"  Are  3'ou  ill,  that  3'ou  have  left  3-our  room  at  this 
hour?"  he  asked. 

"  Dear  Monsieur  Alain,"  said  Godefroid,  frankl3', 
''I  am  tortured  with  a  curiosity  which  one  word  from 
3'ou  will  make  ver3"  harmless  or  ver3'  indiscreet ;  and 
that  explains  clearl3'  enough  the  spirit  in  which  1  shall 
ask  m3'  question." 

"  Oh !  oh !  and  what  is  your  question  ? "  said  the 
good  soul,  looking  at  the  young  man  with  an  eye  that 
was  half  mischievous. 

''What  was  it  that  brought  3'ou  to  lead  the  life  that 
you  live  here?  For,  surel3^  to  accept  the  doctrine  of 
such  total  renunciation  of  all  personal  interests,  a  man 
must  have  been  disgusted  with  the  world,  or  else  have 
injured  others." 

"Eh!  m3"  dear  lad,"  replied  the  old  man,  letting  a 
smile  flicker  on  his  large  lips,  which  gave  to  his  rosy 
mouth  the  kindliest  expression  that  the  genius  of  a 
painter  ever  imagined,  *'  can  we  not  be  moved  to  the 
deepest  pit3^  b3'  the  spectacle   of  human  wretchedness 


74  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

me !  "  —  a  pause  he  filled  himself  b}'  pushing  his 
cushion  under  Godefroid's  feet  to  share  it  with  him. 

"I  was  then  about  thirt}^  3'ears  of  age/'  he  said. 
"  It  was  the  year  '98,  if  I  remember  right,  —  a  period 
when  3'oung  men  were  forced  to  have  the  experience  of 
men  of  sixty.  One  morning,  a  little  before  my  break- 
fast hour,  which  was  nine  o'clock,  my  old  housekeeper 
ushered  in  one  of  the  few  friends  remaining  to  me 
after  the  Revolution.  My  first  word  was  to  ask  him  to 
breakfast.  My  friend  —  his  name  was  Mongenod,  a 
fellow  about  twentj^-eight  3'ears  of  age  —  accepted,  but 
he  did  so  in  an  awkward  manner.  I  had  not  seen  him 
since  1793." 

"  Mongenod  !  "  cried  Godefroid  ;  ^^  wh}',  that  is  —  " 

"  If  you  want  to  know  the  end  before  the  beginning, 
how  am  I  to  tell  3'ou  m3'  histor3'?"  said  the  old  man, 
smiling. 

Godefroid  made  a  sign  which  promised  absolute 
silence. 

"When  Mongenod  sat  down,"  continued  Monsieur 
Alain,  "I  noticed  that  his  shoes  were  worn  out.  His 
stockings  had  been  washed  so  often  that  it  was  diffi- 
cult to  say  if  the3^  were  silk  or  not.  His  breeches,  of 
apricot-colored  cassimere,  were  so  old  that  the  color 
had  disappeared  in  spots ;  and  the  buckles,  instead  of 
being  of  steel,  seemed  to  me  to  be  made  of  common 
iron.     His  white,  flowered  waistcoat,  now  3'ellow  from 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  75 

long  wearing,  also  his  shirt,  the  frill  of  which  was 
fra3ed,  betra3'ed  a  horrible  yet  decent  poverty.  A 
mere  glance  at  his  coat  was  enough  to  convince  me 
that  m}'  friend  had  fallen  into  dire  distress.  That 
coat  was  nut-brown  in  color,  threadbare  at  the  seams, 
carefully  brushed,  though  the  collar  was  greas}^  from 
pomade  or  powder,  and  had  white  metal  buttons  now 
copper-colored.  The  whole  was  so  shabb}'  that  I  tried 
not  to  look  at  it.  The  hat  —  an  opera  hat  of  a  kind 
we  then  carried  under  the  arm,  and  not  on  the  head  — 
had  seen  man}'^  governments.  Nevertheless,  m}'  poor 
friend  must  have  spent  a  few  sous  at  the  barber's, 
for  he  was  neatly  shaved ;  and  his  hair,  gathered 
behind  his  head  with  a  comb  and  powdered  carefull}', 
smelt  of  pomade.  I  saw  two  chains  hanging  down 
on  his  breeches,  —  two  rusty  steel  chains,  —  but  no 
appearance  of  a  watch  in  his  pocket.  I  tell  3'ou  all 
these  details,  as  they  come  to  me,"  said  Monsieur  Alain  ; 
"  I  seldom  think  of  this  matter  now  ;  but  when  I  do, 
all  the  particulars  come  vividl}^  before  me." 
He  paused  a  moment  and  then  resumed  :  — 
"  It  was  winter,  and  Mongenod  evidentl}'  had  no 
cloak ;  for  I  noticed  that  several  lumps  of  snow,  which 
must  have  dropped  from  the  roofs  as  he  walked  along, 
were  sticking  to  the  collar  of  his  coat.  When  he  took 
off  his  rabbit-skin  gloves,  and  I  saw  his  right  hand,  I 
noticed   the  signs   of  labor,  and   toilsome  labor,  too. 


76  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Now  his  father,  the  advocate  of  the  Grand  Coun- 
cil, had  left  him  some  property,  —  about  five  or  six 
thousand  francs  a  year.  1  saw  at  once  that  he  had 
come  to  me  to  borrow  money.  I  had,  in  a  secret  hiding- 
place,  two  hundred  louis  d'or,  —  an  enormous  hoard  at 
that  time ;  for  they  were  w^orth  I  could  n't  now  tell 
you  how  man}'  hundred  thousand  francs  in  assignats. 
Mongenod  and  I  had  studied  in  the  same  college,  — 
that  of  Grassins,  —  and  we  had  met  again  in  the  same 
law-office,  —  that  of  Bordin,  —  a  truly  honest  man. 
When  3'ou  have  spent  }'our  boyhood  and  played  3'our 
youthful  pranks  with  the  same  comrade,  the  sympathy 
between  3'ou  and  him  has  something  sacred  about  it ; 
his  voice,  his  glance,  stir  certain  chords  in  your  heart 
which  onl}'  vibrate  under  the  memories  that  he  brings 
back.  Even  if  you  have  had  cause  of  complaint  against 
such  a  comrade,  the  rights  of  the  friendship  between 
3'Ou  can  never  be  effaced.  But  there  had  never  been 
the  slightest  jar  between  us  two.  At  the  death  of 
his  father,  in  1787,  Mongenod  was  left  richer  than  I. 
Though  I  had  never  borrowed  mone}'  from  him,  I  owed 
him  pleasures  which  m}^  father's  economy  denied  me. 
Without  my  generous  comrade  I  should  never  have 
seen  the  first  representation  of  the  '  Marriage  of 
Figaro.'  Mongenod  was  what  was  called  in  those 
days  a  charming  cavalier  ;  he  was  very  gallant.  Some- 
times I  blamed  him  for  his  facile  way  of  making  inti- 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  77 

macies  and  his  too  great  amiabilit3\  His  purse  opened' 
freely ;  he  lived  in  a  free-banded  wa}^ ;  he  would  serve 
a  man  as  second  having  onlj'  seen  him  twice.  Good 
God !  how  you  send  me  back  to  the  days  and  the  ways 
of  my  youth ! "  said  the  worth}-  man,  with  his  cheery 
smile. 

"Are  3'ou  sorr}^?"  said  Godefroid. 

"  Oh,  no  !  and  you  can  judge  by  the  minuteness  with 
which  I  am  telling  3'ou  all  this  how  great  a  place  this 
event  has  held  in  my  life. 

"Mongenod,  endowed  with  an  excellent  heart  and 
fine  courage,  a  trifle  Voltairean,  was  inclined  to  play 
the  nobleman,"  went  on  Monsieur  Alain.  "  His  educa- 
tion at  Grassins,  where  there  were  manj*  young  nobles, 
and  his  various  gallantries,  had  given  him  the  polished 
manners  and  waj's  of  people  of  condition,  who  were 
then  called  aristocrats.  You  can  therefore  imagine  how 
great  was  m}^  surprise  to  see  such  s^'mptoms  of  poverty 
in  the  young  and  elegant  Mongenod  of  1787  when  m}' 
eyes  left  his  face  and  rested  on  his  garments.  But  as, 
at  that  unhapp3'  period  of  our  histor}',  some  persons 
assumed  a  shabb3'  exterior  for  safet3",  and  as  he  might 
have  had  some  other  and  sufficient  reasons  for  dis- 
guising himself,  I  awaited  an  explanation,  although  I 
opened  the  wa3''  to  it.  '  What  a  plight  you  are  in,  m3' 
dear  Mongenod! '  I  said,  accepting  the  pinch  of  snuff  he 
offered  me  from  a  copper  and  zinc  snuff-box.      '  Sad 


78  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

indeed  ! '  he  answered ;  '  I  have  but  one  friend  left, 
and  that  is  3'ou.  I  have  done  all  I  could  to  avoid 
appealing  to  3'ou  ;  but  I  must  ask  3'ou  for  a  hundred 
louis.  The  sum  is  large,  I  know/  he  went  on,  seeing 
my  surprise ;  '  but  if  you  gave  me  fift}^  I  should  be 
unable  ever  to  return  them  ;  whereas  with  one  hundred 
I  can  seek  my  fortune  in  better  waj's,  —  despair  will 
inspire  me  to  find  them.'  '  Then  3'Ou  have  nothing?'  I 
exclaimed.  '  I  have,'  he  said,  brushing  awa}^  a  tear, 
'  five  sous  left  of  m}^  last  piece  of  mone3\  To  come 
here  to  3'ou  I  have  had  my  boots  blacked  and  m}-  face 
shaved.  I  possess  what  I  have  on  m}'  back.  But,'  he 
added,  with  a  gesture,  '  I  owe  my  landlady  a  thousand 
francs  in  assignats,  and  the  man  I  bu}^  cold  victuals 
from  refused  me  credit  yesterday.  I  am  absolutely 
without  resources.'  'What  do  3'Ou  think  of  doing?' 
'Enlisting  as  a  soldier  if  3'ou  cannot  help  me.'  '  You  ! 
a  soldier,  Mongenod?'  'I  will  get  m3'self  killed,  or 
I  will  be  General  Mongenod.'  '  Well,'  I  said,  much 
moved,  '  eat  3'our  breakfast  in  peace  ;  I  have  a  hundred 
louis.' 

"At  that  point,"  said  the  goodman,  interrupting  him- 
self and  looking  at  Godefroid  with  a  shrewd  air,  "  I 
thought  it  best  to  tell  him  a  bit  of  a  fib." 

"'That  is  all  I  possess  in  the  world,'  I  said.  'I 
have  been  waiting  for  a  fall  in  the  Funds  to  invest  that 
mone3';  but  I  will  put  it  in  your  hands  instead,  and  you 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  79 

shall  consider  me  your  partner;  I  will  leave  to  your  con- 
science the  duty  of  returning  it  to  me  in  due  time.  The 
conscience  of  an  honest  man/  I  said,  '  is  a  better  secu- 
rity than  the  Funds.'  Mongenod  looked  at  me  fixedl}- 
as  I  spoke,  and  seemed  to  be  inlaying  m}-  words  upon 
his  heart.  He  put  out  his  right  hand,  I  laid  my  left 
into  it,  and  we  held  them  together,  — I  deeply  moA-ed, 
and  he  with  two  big  tears  rolling  down  his  cheeks. 
The  sight  of  those  tears  wrung  m}'  heart.  I  was  more 
moved  still  when  Mongenod  pulled  out  a  ragged  foulard 
handkerchief  to  wipe  them  awa}'.  '  Wait  here,'  I  said  ; 
and  I  went  to  my  secret  hiding-place  with  a  heart  as 
agitated  as  though  I  had  heard  a  woman  say  she  loved 
me.  I  came  back  with  two  rolls  of  lift}'  louis  each. 
'  Here,  count  them.'  He  would  not  count  them  ;  and 
he  looked  about  him  for  a  desk  on  which  to  write,  he 
said,  a  proper  receipt.  I  positivel}'  refused  to  take  any 
paper.  '  If  I  should  die,'  I  said,  '  my  heirs  would 
trouble  3'ou.     This  is  to  be  between  ourselves.' 

^'Well,"  continued  Monsieur  Alain,  smiling,  "when 
Mongenod  found  me  a  good  friend  he  ceased  to  look  as 
sad  and  anxious  as  when  he  entered  ;  in  fact,  he  be- 
came quite  ga3^  M3'  housekeeper  gave  us  some  03'sters, 
white  wine,  and  an  omelet,  with  broiled  kidneys,  and 
the  remains  of  a  pate  m3'  old  mother  had  sent  me  ;  also 

A. 

some  dessert,  coffee,  and  liqueur  of  the  lies.  Mon- 
genod, who  had  been  starving  for  two  da3's,  was  fed  up. 


80  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

We  were  so  interested  in  talking  about  our  life  before 
the  Revolution  that  we  sat  at  table  till  three  in  the 
afternoon.  Mongenod  told  me  how  he  had  lost  his 
fortune.  In  the  first  place,  his  father  having  invested 
the  greater  part  of  his  capital  in  cit3'  loans,  when  they 
fell  Mongenod  lost  two  thirds  of  all  he  had.  Then, 
having  sold  his  house  in  the  rue  de  Savoie,  he  was 
forced  to  receive  the  price  in  assignats.  After  that  he 
took  it  into  his  head  to  found  a  newspaper,  '  La  Sen- 
tinelle ; '  that  compelled  him  to  fl}'  at  the  end  of  six 
months.  His  hopes,  he  said,  were  now  fixed  on  the 
success  of  a  comic  opera  called  '  Les  Peruviens.' 
When  he  said  that  I  began  to  tremble.  Mongenod 
turned  author,  wasting  his  money  on  a  newspaper, 
living  no  doubt  in  the  theatres,  connected  with  singers 
at  the  Fe3'deau,  with  musicians,  and  all  the  queer  people 
who  lurk  behind  the  scenes,  —  to  tell  3'ou  the  truth,  he 
didn't  seem  my  Mongenod.  I  trembled.  But  how 
could  I  take  back  my  hundred  louis?  I  saw  each  roll 
in  each  pocket  of  his  breeches  like  the  barrels  of  two 
pistols. 

"Then,"  continued  Monsieur  Alain,  and  this  time 
he  sighed,  "  Mongenod  went  away.  When  I  was  alone, 
and  no  longer  in  presence  of  hard  and  cruel  povert}^,  I 
began,  in  spite  of  m3'self,  to  reflect.  I  was  sobered. 
'  Mongenod,'  thought  I,  '  is  perhaps  thorough^  de- 
praved ;   he  ma3'  have  been  playing  a  comed3"  at  my 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  81 

expense/  His  gayet}',  the  moment  I  had  handed  over  to 
him  readily  such  a  large  sum  of  money,  struck  me  then 
as  being  too  like  the  joy  of  the  valets  on  the  stage  when 
they  catch  a  Geronte.  I  ended,  where  I  ought  to  have 
begun,  by  resolving  to  make  some  investigations  as  to 
my  friend  Mongenod,  who  had  given  me  his  address,  — 
written  on  the  back  of  a  playing  card !  I  did  not 
choose,  as  a  matter  of  delicacy,  to  go  and  see  him  the 
next  day  ;  he  might  have  thought  there  was  distrust  in 
such  promptness,  as,  indeed,  there  would  have  been. 
The  second  day  I  had  certain  matters  to  attend  to 
which  took  all  my  time,  and  it  was  only  at  the  end  of 
two  weeks  that,  not  seeing  or  hearing  of  Mongenod,  I 
went  one  morning  from  the  Croix-Rouge,  where  I  was 
then  living,  to  the  rue  des  Moineaux,  where  he  lived. 
I  found  he  was  living  in  furnished  lodgings  of  the 
lowest  class ;  but  the  landlady  was  a  very  worthy 
woman,  the  widow  of  a  magistrate  who  died  on  the 
scaffold ;  she  was  utterly  ruined  b}'  the  Revolution,  and 
had  only  a  few  louis  with  which  to  begin  the  hazardous 
trade  of  taking  lodgers." 

Here  Monsieur  Alain  interrupted  himself  to  explain. 
"I  knew  her  later,"  he  said;  "she  then  had  seven 
houses  in  Saint-Roch,  and  was  making  quite  a  little 
fortune. 

"  'The  citizen  Mongenod  is  not  at  home,'  the  land- 
lady said  to  me  ;  *  but  there  is  some  one  there.'     This 

6 


82  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

remark  excited  my  curiosit3\  I  went  up  to  the  fifth 
story.  A  charming  person  opened  the  door,  —  oh, 
such  a  pretty  young  woman  !  who  looked  at  me  rather 
suspiciously  and  kept  the  door  half  closed.  '  I  am 
Alain,  a  friend  of  Mongenod's,'  I  said.  Instantly  the 
door  opened  wide,  and  I  entered  a  miserable  garret, 
which  was,  nevertheless,  kept  with  the  utmost  neat- 
ness. The  pretty  young  woman  offered  me  a  chair 
before  a  fireplace  where  were  ashes  but  no  fire,  at 
the  corner  of  which  I  saw  a  common  earthen  foot- 
warmer.  '  It  makes  me  verj'  happy,  monsieur,'  she 
said,  taking  my  hand  and  pressing  it  affectionately, 
'  to  be  able  to  express  to  3'ou  my  gratitude.  You  have 
indeed  saved  us.  Were  it  not  for  you  I  might  never 
have  seen  Mongenod  again.  He  might,  —  3'es,  he 
would  have  thrown  himself  into  the  river.  He  was 
desperate  when  he  left  me  to  go  and  see  you.'  On 
examining  this  young  person  I  was  surprised  to  see 
her  head  tied  up  in  a  foulard,  and  along  the  temples 
a  curious  dark  line  ;  but  I  presentl}'  saw  that  her  head 
was  shaved.  '  Have  you  been  ill?'  I  asked,  as  I  noticed 
this  singularit}'.  She  cast  a  glance  at  a  broken  mirror 
in  a  shabbj'  frame  and  colored  ;  then  the  tears  came 
into  her  e3'es.  'Yes,  monsieur,'  she  said,  'I  had  hor- 
rible headaches,  and  I  was  obliged  to  have  m3'  hair  cut 
oflT ;  it  came  to  m3^  feet.'  '  Am  I  speaking  to  Madame 
Mongenod?'  I  asked.     'Yes,  monsieur,'  she  answered, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  83 

giving  me  a  trulj^  celestial  look.  I  bowed  to  the  poor 
little  woman  and  went  awa}',  intending  to  make  the 
landlady  tell  me  something  about  them ;  but  she  was 
out.  I  was  certain  that  poor  young  woman  had  sold 
her  hair  to  buy  bread.  I  went  from  there  to  a  wood 
merchant  and  ordered  half  a  cord  of  wood,  telling  the 
cartman  and  the  sawyer  to  take  the  bill,  which  I  made 
the  dealer  receipt  to  the  name  of  citizen  Mongenod, 
and  give  it  to  the  little  woman. 

"There  ends  the  period  of  what  I  long  called  my 
foolishness^'*  said  Monsieur  Alain,  clasping  his  hands 
and  lifting  them  with  a  look  of  repentance. 

Godefroid  could  not  help  smiling.  He  was,  as  we 
shall  see,  greatly  mistaken  in  that  smile. 

''Two  days  later,"  resumed  the  worth}^  man,  "I  met 
one  of  those  men  who  are  neither  friends  nor  strangers, 
with  whom  we  have  relations  from  time  to  time,  and 
call  acquaintances,  —  a  certain  Monsieur  Barillaud,  who 
remarked  accidentally,  a  propos  of  the  'Peruviens,'  that 
the  author  was  a  friend  of  his.  '  Then  you  know  citizen 
Mongenod?'  I  said. 

"  In  those  daj's  we  were  obliged  b}^  law  to  call  each 
other  '  citizen,'  '^  said  Monsieur  Alain  to  Godefroid,  by 
way  of  parenthesis.  Then  he  continued  his  narra- 
tive :  — 

"The  citizen  looked  at  me,  exclaiming,  'I  wish  I 
never  had  known  him ;   for  he  has  several  times  bor- 


84  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

rowed  mone}"  of  me,  and  shown  his  friendship  b}"  not 
returning  it.  He  is  a  queer  fellow,  —  good-hearted  and 
all  that,  but  full  of  illusions !  always  an  imagination 
on  fire  !  I  will  do  him  this  justice,  —  he  does  not  mean 
to  deceive  ;  but  as  he  deceives  himself  about  ever}-- 
thing,  he  manages  to  behave  like  a  dishonest  man.' 
'  How  much  does  he  owe  you?'  I  asked.  'Oh  !  a  good 
many  hundred  francs.  He's  a  basket  with  a  hole  in 
the  bottom.  Nobody  knows  where  his  money  goes ; 
perhaps  he  does  n't  know  himself.'  '  Has  he  any  re- 
sources?' '  Well,  3'es,' said  Barillaud,  laughing ;  'just 
now  he  is  talking  of  buying  land  among  the  savages  in 
the  United  States.'  I  carried  away  with  me  the  drop 
of  vinegar  which  casual  gossip  thus  put  into  my  heart, 
and  it  soured  all  my  feelings.  I  went  to  see  m}^  old 
master,  in  whose  office  Mongenod  and  I  had  studied 
law  ;  he  was  now  my  counsel.  When  I  told  him  about 
my  loan  to  Mongenod  and  the  manner  in  which  I  had 
acted,  —  '  What ! '  he  cried,  '  one  of  my  old  clerks  to 
behave  in  that  way !  You  ought  to  have  put  him  off 
till  the  next  day  and  come  to  see  me.  You  would  then 
have  found  out  that  I  have  forbidden  my  clerks  to  let 
Mongenod  into  this  oflSce.  Within  the  last  j^ear  he  has 
borrowed  three  hundred  francs  of  me  in  silver,  —  an 
enormous  sum  at  present  rates.  Three  days  before  he 
breakfasted  with  3"ou  I  met  him  on  the  street,  and  he 
gave  such  a  piteous  account  of  his  poverty  that  I  let 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  85 

him  have  two  louis.'  'If  I  have  been  the  dupe  of  a 
clever  comedian,'  I  said  to  Bordin,  'so  much  the  worse 
for  him,  not  for  me.  But  tell  me  what  to  do.'  '  You 
must  try  to  get  from  him  a  written  acknowledgment ; 
for  a  debtor,  however  insolvent  he  ma}'  be,  ma}'  become 
solvent,  and  then  he  will  pay.'  Thereupon  Bordin  took 
from  a  tin  box  a  case  on  which  I  saw  the  name  of 
Mongenod ;  he  showed  me  three  receipts  of  a  hundred 
francs  each.  '  The  next  time  he  comes  I  shall  have 
him  admitted,  and  I  shall  make  him  add  the  interest 
and  the  two  louis,  and  give  me  a  note  for  the  whole. 
I  shall,  at  any  rate,  have  things  properh'  done,  and  be 
in  a  position  to  obtain  paj'ment.'  '  Well,'  said  I  to 
Bordin,  '  can  3'ou  have  m}'  matter  set  right  so  far,  as 
well  as  yours?  for  I  know  you  are  a  good  man,  and 
what  3'ou  do  will  be  right.'  '  I  have  remained  master 
of  my  ground,'  he  said  ;  '  but  when  persons  behave  as 
3'Ou  have  done  the}'  are  at  the  mere}'  of  a  man  who  can 
snap  his  fingers  at  them.  As  for  me,  I  don't  choose 
that  an}'  man  should  get  the  better  of  me, — get  the 
better  of  a  former  attorney  to  the  Chatelet !  —  ta-ra-ra ! 
Every  man  to  whom  a  sum  of  money  is  lent  as  heed- 
lessly as  you  lent  yours  to  Mongenod,  ends,  after  a 
certain  time,  by  thinking  that  money  his  own.  It  is  no 
longer  your  money,  it  is  his  money ;  you  become  his 
creditor,  —  an  inconvenient,  unpleasant  person.  A 
debtor  will  then  try  to  get  rid  of  you  by  some  juggling 


86  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

with  his  conscience ;  and  out  of  one  hundred  men  in 
his  position,  seventy-five  will  do  their  best  never  to  see 
or  hear  of  you  again.'  '  Then  3'ou  think  o\\\y  twent}'- 
five  men  in  a  hundred  are  honest?'  'Did  I  sa}'  that?' 
he  replied,  smiling  maliciously.  '  The  estimate  is  too 
high?'" 

Monsieur  Alain  paused  to  put  the  fire  together;  that 
done,  he  resumed  :  — 

"Two  weeks  later  I  received  a  letter  from  Bordin 
asking  me  to  go  to  his  office  and  get  my  receipt.  1 
went.  '  I  tried  to  get  fifty  of  your  louis  for  3'ou,'  he 
said,  '  but  the  birds  had  flown.  Say  good-by  to  3'our 
3'ellow  bo3's ;  those  pretty  canaries  are  off  to  other 
climes.  You  have  had  to  do  with  a  sharper ;  that 's 
what  he  is.  He  declared  to  me  that  his  wife  and 
father-in-law  had  gone  to  the  United  States  with  sixty 
of  30ur  louis  to  bu3"  land ;  that  he  intended  to  follow, 
for  the  purpose,  he  said,  of  making  a  fortune  and  pay- 
ing his  debts  ;  the  amount  of  which,  carefully  drawn 
up,  he  confided  to  me,  requesting  me  to  keep  an  e3'e  on 
what  became  of  his  creditors.  Here  is  a  list  of  the 
items,'  continued  Bordin,  showing  me  a  paper  from 
which  he  read  the  total,  —  '  Seventeen  thousand  francs 
in  coin  ;  a  sum  with  which  a  house  could  be  bought 
that  would  bring  in  two  thousand  francs  a  3'ear.' 
After  replacing  the  list  in  the  case,  Bordin  gave  me 
a  note  for  a  sum  equivalent  to  a  hundred  louis  in  gold. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  87 

with  a  letter  in  which  Mongenod  admitted  having  re- 
ceived m}'^  hundred  louis,  on  which  he  owed  interest. 
*  So  now  I  am  all  right,'  I  said  to  Bordin.  '  He  can- 
not den}'  the  debt,'  replied  m}'  old  master  ;  '  but  where 
there  are  no  funds,  even  the  king  —  I  should  say  the 
Directory  —  can't  enforce  rights.'  I  went  home.  Be- 
lieving that  I  had  been  robbed  in  a  way  intentionalh' 
screened  from  the  law,  I  withdrew  my  esteem  from 
Mongenod,  and  resigned  myself  philosophically. 

"  If  I  have  dwelt  on  these  details,  which  are  so 
commonplace  and  seem  so  slight,"  said  the  worthy 
man,  looking  at  Godefroid,  "it  is  not  without  good 
reason.  I  want  to  explain  to  you  how  I  was  led  to 
act,  as  most  men  act,  in  defiance  of  the  rules  which  sav- 
ages observe  in  the  smallest  matters.  Many  persons 
would  justif}"  themselves  by  the  opinion  of  so  excellent 
a  man  as  Bordin  ;  but  to-day  I  know  myself  to  have 
been  inexcusable.  When  it  comes  to  condemning  one 
of  our  fellows,  and  withdrawing  our  esteem  from  him, 
we  should  act  from  our  own  convictions  only.  But 
have  we  any  right  to  make  our  heart  a  tribunal  before 
which  we  arraign  our  neighbor?  Where  is  the  law? 
what  is  our  standard  of  judgment?  That  which  in  us 
is  weakness  may  be  strength  in  our  neighbor.  So  man}' 
beings,  so  many  different  circumstances  for  every  act ; 
and  there  are  no  two  beings  exactly  alike  in  all  hu- 
manity.    Society  alone  has  the  right  over  its  members 


88  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

of  repression  ;  as  for  punishment,  I  denj'  it  tliat  right. 
Repression  suffices ;  and  that,  besides,  brings  with  it 
punishment  enough. 

"  So,"  resumed  Monsieur  Alain,  continuing  his  liis- 
toiy,  having  drawn  from  it  that  noble  teaching,  "after 
listening  to  the  gossip  of  the  Parisian,  and  relying  on 
the  wisdom  of  vay  old  master,  I  condemned  Mongenod. 
His  play,  '  Les  Peruviens,'  was  announced.  I  expected 
to  receive  a  ticket  from  Mongenod  for  the  first  repre- 
sentation ;  I  established  in  m}'  own  mind  a  sort  of  claim 
on  him.  It  seemed  to  me  that  b}"  reason  of  vay  loan 
my  friend  was  a  sort  of  vassal  of  mine,  who  owed  me 
a  number  of  things  besides  the  interest  on  m}^  money. 
We  all  think  that.  Mongenod  not  only  did  not  send 
me  a  ticket,  but  I  saw  him  from  a  distance  coming 
towards  me  in  that  dark  passage  under  the  Theatre 
Feydeau,  well  dressed,  almost  elegant;  he  pretended 
not  to  see  me  ;  then,  after  he  had  passed  and  I  turned 
to  run  after  him,  m}^  debtor  hastil}'  escaped  through 
a  transverse  alley.  This  circumstance  greatly  irritated 
me ;  and  the  irritation,  instead  of  subsiding  with  time, 
only  increased,  and  for  the  following  reason :  Some 
days  after  this  encounter,  I  wrote  to  Mongenod  some- 
what in  these  terms :  '  M}"  friend,  you  ought  not  to 
think  me  indifferent  to  whatever  happens  to  you  of 
good  or  evil.  Are  you  satisfied  witli  the  success  of 
*Les  Peruviens?'     You  forgot  me   (of  course  it  was 


The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation,  89 

3'our  right  to  do  so)  for  the  first  representation,  at 
which  1  should  have  applauded  you.  But,  nevertheless, 
I  hope  30U  found  a  Peru  in  your  Peruvians,  for  I  have 
found  a  use  for  my  funds,  and  shall  look  to  3'ou  for 
the  payment  of  them  when  the  note  falls  due.  Your 
friend,  Alain.'  After  waiting  two  weeks  for  an  answer, 
I  went  to  the  rue  des  Moineaux.  The  landladj^  told 
me  that  the  little  wife  did  reallj'  go  away  with  her 
father  at  the  time  that  Mongenod  told  Bordin  of  their 
departure.  Mongenod  always  left  the  garret  ver^^  early 
in  the  morning  and  did  not  return  till  late  at  night. 
Another  two  weeks,  and  I  wrote  again,  thus :  '  M^^ 
dear  Mongenod,  I  cannot  find  you,  and  you  do  not 
reply  to  m}"  letters.  I  do  not  understand  3'our  conduct. 
If  I  behaved  thus  to  3'ou,  what  would  3'ou  think  of 
me  ? '  I  did  not  subscribe  the  letter  as  before,  '  Your 
friend,'  I  merel3'  wrote,  'Kind  regards.' 

^'Well,  it  was  all  of  no  use,"  said  Monsieur  Alain. 
' '  A  month  went  b3'  and  I  had  no  news  of  Mongenod. 
'Les  Peruviens'  did  not  obtain  the  great  success  on 
which  he  counted.  I  went  to  the  twentieth  represen- 
tation, thinking  to  find  him  and  obtain  m3'  mone3\  The 
house  was  less  than  half  full ;  but  Madame  Scio  was 
ver3'  beautiful.  They  told  me  in  the  foyer  that  the  pla3^ 
would  run  a  few  nights  longer.  I  went  seven  difl^erent 
times  to  Mongenod's  lodging  and  did  not  find  him  ; 
each  time  I  left  m3'  name  with  the  landlad3'.     At  last  I 


90  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

wrote  again  :  '  Monsieur,  if  you  do  not  wish  to  lose  my 
respect,  as  you  have  my  friendship,  you  will  treat  me 
now  as  a  stranger,  —  that  is  to  sa}',  with  politeness  ; 
and  you  will  tell  me  when  you  will  be  read}^  to  pa}*  j'our 
note,  which  is  now  due.  I  shall  act  according  to  3'our 
answer.  Your  obedient  servant,  Alain.'  No  answer. 
We  were  then  in  1799  ;  one  year,  all  but  two  months, 
had  expired.  At  the  end  of  those  two  months  I  went 
to  Bordin.  Bordin  took  the  note,  had  it  protested,  and 
sued  Mongenod  for  me.  Meantime  the  disasters  of  the 
French  armies  had  produced  such  depreciation  of  the 
Funds  that  investors  could  buy  a  five-francs  dividend 
on  seven  francs  capital.  Therefore,  for  my  hundred 
louis  in  gold,  I  might  have  bought  m3'self  fifteen  hun- 
dred francs  of  income.  Every  morning,  as  I  took  my 
coffee  and  read  the  paper,  I  said  to  m3'self :  '  That 
cursed  Mongenod  !  if  it  were  not  for  him  I  should  have 
three  thousand  francs  a  year  to  live  on.'  Mongenod 
became  m}'  bete-noire ;  I  inveighed  against  him  even 
as  I  walked  the  streets.  '  Bordin  is  there,'  I  thought 
to  m3'self ;  '  Bordin  will  put  the  screws  on,  and  a  good 
thing,  too.'  My  feelings  turned  to  hatred,  and  my 
hatred  to  imprecations ;  I  cursed  the  man,  and  I  be- 
lieved he  had  everv  vice.  '  Ah !  Monsieur  Barillaud 
was  very  right,'  thought  I,  '  in  all  he  told  me  ! '  " 

Monsieur  Alain  paused  reflectivelv. 

"Yes,"  he  said  again,  "I  thought  him  ver}-  right  in 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  91 

all  he  told  ine.  At  last,  one  morning,  in  came  my 
debtor,  no  more  embarrassed  than  if  he  did  n't  owe  me 
a  sou.  When  I  saw  him  I  felt  all  the  shame  he  ought 
to  have  felt.  I  was  like  a  criminal  taken  in  the  act ; 
I  was  all  upset.  The  eighteenth  Brumaire  had  just 
taken  place.  Public  affairs  were  doing  well,  the  Funds 
had  gone  up.  Bonaparte  was  off  to  fight  the  battle  of 
Marengo.  '  It  is  unfortunate,  monsieur,'  I  said,  re- 
ceiving Mongenod  standing,  '  that  I  owe  your  visit  to  a 
sheriff's  summons.'  Mongenod  took  a  chair  and  sat 
down.  '  I  came  to  tell  you,'  he  said,  '  that  I  am  totalh'' 
unable  to  pay  j'ou.'  '  You  made  me  miss  a  fine  invest- 
ment before  the  election  of  the  First  Consul,  —  an  in- 
vestment which  would  have  given  me  a  little  fortune.' 
'  I  know  it,  Alain,'  he  said,  '  I  know  it.  But  what  is 
the  good  of  suing  me  and  crushing  me  with  bills  of 
costs?  I  have  nothing  with  which  to  pa}"  an3'thing. 
Lately  I  received  letters  from  m}-  wife  and  father-in- 
law  ;  they  have  bought  land  with  the  money  you  lent 
me,  and  they  send  me  a  list  of  the  things  they  need  to 
improve  it.  I  have  spent  all  I  could  get  on  those  pur- 
chases. Now,  unless  some  one  prevents  it,  I  shall  sail 
on  a  Dutch  vessel  from  Flushing,  whither  I  have  sent 
the  few  things  I  am  taking  out  to  them.  Bonaparte 
has  won  the  battle  of  Marengo,  peace  will  be  signed,  I 
may  safel}'  rejoin  my  famil}' ;  and  I  have  need  to,  for  my 
dear  little  wife  is  about  to  sive  birth  to  a  child.'     *^And 


92  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

so  3' ou  have  sacrificed  me  to  your  own  interests  ? '  said 
I.  '  Yes/  he  answered,  '  for  I  believed  yon  ni}^  friend.' 
At  that  moment  T  felt  myself  inferior  to  Mongenod,  so 
sublime  did  he  seem  to  me  as  he  said  those  grand  words. 
'  Did  I  not  speak  to  3'ou  franklj-,'  he  said,  '  in  this  \eYy 
room  ?  I  came  to  you,  Alain,  as  the  onl}-  person  who 
would  really  understand  me.  I  told  3'Ou  that  fift3'  louis 
would  be  lost,  but  a  hundred  I  could  return  to  3'Ou.  I 
did  not  bind  m3"self  b3^  saying  when ;  for  how  could  I 
know  the  time  at  which  m3^  long  struggle  with  disaster 
would  end  ?  You  were  m3^  last  friend.  All  others,  even 
our  old  master  Bordin,  despised  me  for  the  very  reason 
that  I  borrowed  mone3"  of  them.  Oh  !  you  do  not 
know,  Alain,  the  dreadful  sensation  which  grips  the 
heart  of  an  honest  man  when,  in  the  throes  of  povert3', 
he  goes  to  a  friend  and  asks  him  for  succor,  —  and  all 
that  follows !  I  hope  3'ou  never  ma3^  know  it ;  it  is 
far  worse  than  the  anguish  of  death.  You  have  written 
me  letters  which,  if  I  had  written  them  to  3'Ou  in  a.  like 
situation,  3'ou  would  have  thought  ver3'  odious.  You 
expected  of  me  that  which  it  was  out  of  m3^  power  to 
do.  But  3'OU  are  the  onl3"  person  to  whom  I  shall  tr3' 
to  justif3^  m3'self.  In  spite  of  3X)ur  severit3',  and  though 
from  being  a  friend  3'ou  became  a  creditor  on  the  da3' 
when  Bordin  asked  for  m3^  note  on  your  behalf  (thus 
abrogating  the  generous  compact  3'ou  had  made  with 
me  there,  on  that  spot,  when  we  clasped  hands  and 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  93 

mingled  our  tears), — well,  in  spite  of  all  that,  I  have 
remembered  that  day,  and  because  of  it  I  have  come 
here  to  say  to  you,  You  do  not  know  misery,  therefore 
do  not  judge  it.  I  have  not  had  one  moment  when  I 
could  answer  3'ou.  Would  3'ou  have  wished  me  to  come 
here  and  cajole  you  with  words  ?  I  could  not  pa}'  you  ; 
I  did  not  even  have  enough  for  the  bare  necessities  of 
those  whose  lives  depended  on  me.  My  pla}'  brought 
little.  A  novice  in  theatrical  waj's,  I  became  a  prey  to 
musicians,  actors,  journaUsts,  orchestras.  To  get  the 
means  to  leave  Paris  and  join  my  famil3%  and  carry  to 
them  the  few  things  they  need,  I  have  sold  ''  Les  Peru- 
viens"  outright  to  the  director,  with  two  other  pieces 
which  I  had  in  my  portfolio.  I  start  for  Holland  with- 
out a  sou ;  I  must  reach  Flushing  as  best  I  can  ;  my 
voyage  is  paid,  that  is  all.  Were  it  not  for  the  pity  of 
my  landlad}',  who  has  confidence  in  me,  I  should  have 
to  travel  on  foot,  with  my  bag  upon  my  back.  But,  in 
spite  of  your  doubts  of  me,  I,  remembering  that  without 
you  I  never  could  have  sent  mj  wife  and  father-in-law 
to  New  York,  am  forever  grateful  to  you.  No,  Mon- 
sieur Alain,  I  shall  not  forget  that  the  hundred  louis 
d'or  3'ou  lent  me  would  have  yielded  you  to-day  fifteen 
hundred  francs  a  year.*  '  I  desire  to  believe  you,  Mon- 
genod,'  I  said,  shaken  by  the  tone  in  which  he  made 
this  explanation.  '  Ah,  you  no  longer  sa}^  monsieur  to 
me  ! '  he  said  quickly,  with  a  tender  glance.    '  My  God  ! 


94  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

I  shall  quit  France  with  less  regret  if  I  can  leave  one 
man  behind  me  in  whose  ej'es  I  am  not  half  a  swindler, 
nor  a  spendthrift,  nor  a  man  of  illusions !  Alain,  I 
have  loved  an  angel  in  the  midst  of  my  miser}^  A  man 
who  trul}'  loves  cannot  be  despicable.'  At  those  words 
I  stretched  out  my  hand  to  him.  He  took  it  and  wrung 
it.  '  May  heaven  protect  you  ! '  I  said.  '  Are  we  still 
friends?'  he  asked.  'Yes,' I  replied.  'It  shall  never 
be  that  my  childhood's  comrade  and  the  friend  of  my 
youth  left  me  for  America  under  the  feeling  that  I  was 
angry  with  him.'  Mongenod  kissed  me,  with  tears  in 
his  eyes,  and  rushed  awa}'." 

Monsieur  Alain  stopped  in  his  narrative  for  an  in- 
stant and  looked  at  Godefroid.  "  I  remember  that  day 
with  some  satisfaction,"  he  said.     Then  he  resumed : 

"A  week  or  so  later  I  met  Bordin  and  told  him  of 
that  interview.  He  smiled  and  said :  '  I  hope  it  was 
not  a  pretty  bit  of  comedy.  Did  n't  he  ask  for  anj-- 
thing?'  *No,'  I  answered.  'Well,  he  came  to  see  me 
the  same  day.  I  was  almost  as  touched  as  you  ;  and 
he  asked  me  for  means  to  get  food  on  his  journej^ 
Well,  well,  time  will  show  ! '  These  remarks  of  Bordin 
made  me  fear  I  had  foolishl}"  yielded  to  mistaken  sen- 
sibilit}'.  'Nevertheless,'  I  said  to  myself,  'he,  the  old 
lawyer,  did  as  I  did.'  I  do  not  think  it  necessarj^  to 
explain  to  you  how  I  lost  all,  or  nearly  all,  my  prop- 
erty.    I  had'  placed  a  little  in  the  Funds,  which  gave 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  95 

me  five  hundred  francs  a  3'ear ;  all  else  was  gone.  I 
was  then  thirtj'-four  3'ears  old.  I  obtained,  through 
the  influence  of  Monsieur  Bordin,  a  place  as  clerk,  with 
a  salary  of  eight  hundred  francs,  in  a  branch  office  of 
the  Mont-de-piete,  rue  des  Augustins.^  From  that  time 
I  lived  very  modestl}'.  I  found  a  small  lodging  in  the 
rue  des  Marais,  on  the  third  floor  (two  rooms  and  a 
closet),  for  two  hundred  and  fifty  francs  a  year.  I 
dined  at  a  common  boarding-house  for  fort}'  francs  a 
month.  I  copied  writings  at  night.  Ugly  as  I  was 
and  poor,  I  had  to  renounce  marriage." 

As  Godefroid  heard  this  judgment  which  the  poor 
man  passed  upon  himself  with  beautiful  simplicit}' 
and  resignation,  he  made  a  movement  which  proved, 
far  more  than  any  confidence  in  words  could  have  done, 
the  resemblance  of  their  destinies  ;  and  the  goodman, 
in  answer  to  that  eloquent  gesture,  seemed  to  expect 
the  words  that  followed  it. 

"  Have  you  never  been  loved  ?  "  asked  Godefroid. 

"Never!"  he  said;  "except  bj^  Madame,  who  re- 
turns to  us  all  the  love  we  have  for  her,  —  a  love  which 
I  may  call  divine.  You  must  be  aware  of  it.  We  live 
through  her  life  as  she  lives  through  ours  ;  we  have  but 
one  soul  among  us ;  and  such  pleasures,  though  they 
are  not  physical,  are  none  the  less  intense ;   we  exist 

1  The  Mont-de-Piete  and  its  branches  are  pawn-shops  under  con- 
trol of  the  government.  —  Tr. 


96  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

through  our  hearts.  Ah,  my  child ! "  he  continued, 
"  when  women  come  to  appreciate  moral  qualities,  the}^ 
are  indifferent  to  others  ;  and  they  are  then  old —  Oh ! 
I  have  suffered  deeply,  —  j-es,  deeply  !  " 

"  And  I,  in  the  same  way,"  said  Godefroid. 

"  Under  the  Empire,"  said  the  worthy  man,  resuming 
his  narrative,  "the  Funds  did  not  alwaj^s  pay  their 
dividends  regularly ;  it  was  necessar}^  to  be  prepared 
for  suspensions  of  payment.  From  1802  to  1814  there 
was  scarcely  a  week  that  I  did  not  attribute  my  misfor- 
tunes to  Mongenod.  ^If  it  were  not  for  Mongenod,'  I 
used  to  say  to  myself,  ^  I  might  have  married.  If  I  had 
never  known  him  I  should  not  be  obliged  to  live  in 
such  privation.'  But  then,  again,  there  were  other 
times  when  I  said,  'Perhaps  the  unfortunate  fellow 
has  met  with  ill  luck  over  there.'  In  1806,  at  a  time 
when  I  found  m}^  life  particularly  hard  to  bear,  I  wrote 
him  a  long  letter,  which  I  sent  by  wa}'  of  Holland.  I 
received  no  answer.  I  waited  three  years,  placing  all 
my  hopes  on  that  answer.  At  last  I  resigned  m3'self  to 
my  life.  To  the  five  hundred  francs  I  received  from 
the  Funds  I  now  added  twelve  hundred  from  the  Mont- 
de-piete  (for  they  raised  m}'  salary),  and  five  hundred 
which  I  obtained  from  Monsieur  Cesar  Birotteau,  per- 
fumer, for  keeping  his  books  in  the  evening.  Thus,  not 
only  did  I  manage  to  get  along  comfortabl}',  but  I  laid  by 
eight  hundred  francs  a  3^ear.     At  the  beginning  of  1814 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  97 

I  invested  nine  thousand  francs  of  my  savings  at  forty 
francs  in  the  Funds,  and  tlius  I  was  sure  of  sixteen 
hundred  francs  a  year  for  my  old  age.  Bj^  that  time 
I  had  fifteen  hundred  a  3'ear  from  the  Mont-de-piete, 
six  hundred  for  my  book-keeping,  sixteen  hundred 
from  the  Funds ;  in  all,  three  thousand  seven  hundred 
francs  a  year.  I  took  a  lodging  in  the  rue  de  Seine, 
and  lived  a  little  better.  My  place  had  brought  me  into 
relations  with  many  unfortunates.  For  the  last  twelve 
3'ears  I  had  known  better  than  any  man  whatsoever  the 
misery  of  the  poor.  Once  or  twice  I  had  been  able  to 
do  a  real  service.  I  felt  a  vivid  pleasure  when  I  found 
that  out  of  ten  persons  relieved,  one  or  two  households 
had  been  put  on  their  feet.  It  came  into  my  mind  that 
benevolence  ought  not  to  consist  in  throwing  money  to 
those  who  suffered.  '  Doing  charit}^'  to  use  that  com- 
mon expression,  seemed  to  me  too  often  a  premium 
offered  to  crime.  I  began  to  study  the  question.  I 
was  then  fifty  years  of  age,  and  my  life  was  nearly 
over.  '  Of  what  good  am  I  ? '  thought  I.  '  To  whom 
can  I  leave  my  savings?  When  I  have  furnished  my 
rooms  handsomely',  and  found  a  good  cook,  and  made 
my  life  suitable  in  all  respects,  what  then?  —  how  shall 
I  emplo}^  my  time?'  Eleven  years  of  revolution,  and 
fifteen  years  of  poverty,  had,  as  I  may  say,  eaten  up 
the  most  precious  part  of  my  life,  —  used  it  up  in  sterile 
toil  for  my  own  individual  preservation.     No  man  at 

7 


98  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

the  age  of  fifty  could  spring  from  that  obscure,  re- 
pressed condition  to  a  briUiant  future  ;  but  ever}'  man 
could  be  of  use.  I  understood  by  this  time  that  watch- 
ful care  and  wise  counsels  have  tenfold  greater  value 
than  money  given  ;  for  the  poor,  above  all  things,  need 
a  guide,  if  only  in  the  labor  the}^  do  for  others,  for 
speculators  are  never  lacking  to  take  advantage  of 
them.  Here  I  saw  before  me  both  an  end  and  an 
occupation,  not  to  speak  of  the  exquisite  enjoyments 
obtained  by  playing  in  a  miniature  way  the  role  of 
Providence." 

"And  to-day  3'ou  play  it  in  a  grand  way,  do  you 
not?"  asked  Godefroid,  eagerl}^ 

"  Ah !  you  want  to  know  everything,"  said  the  old 
man.  "  No,  no  !  Would  you  believe  it,"  he  continued 
after  this  interruption,  "the  smallness  of  my  means 
to  do  the  work  I  now  desired  to  do  brought  back 
the  thought  of  Mongenod.  '  If  it  were  not  for  Mon- 
genod,'  I  kept  saying  to  myself,  '  I  could  do  so  much 
more.  If  a  dishonest  man  had  not  deprived  me  of  fif- 
teen hundred  francs  a  year  I  could  save  this  or  that 
poor  family.'  Excusing  my  own  impotence  by  accusing 
another,  I  felt  that  the  miseries  of  those  to  whom  I 
could  offer  nothing  but  words  of  consolation  were  a 
curse  upon  Mongenod.  That  thought  soothed  my 
heart.  One  morning,  in  January,  1816,  my  house- 
keeper announced, — whom  do   3^ou  suppose?  —  Mon- 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  99 

genocl !  Monsieur  Mongenod  !  And  whom  do  j^ou  think 
I  saw  enter  m}-  room?  The  beautiful  young  woman 
I  had  once  seen,  —  only  now  she  was  thirtj'-six  3'ears 
old, — followed  by  her  three  children  and  Mongenod. 
He  looked  younger  than  when  he  went  away  ;  for  pros- 
perity and  happiness  do  shed  a  halo  round  their  favor- 
ites. Thin,  pale,  yellow,  shrivelled,  when  I  last  saw 
him,  he  was  now  plump,  sleek,  ros}^  as  a  prebendar}', 
and  well  dressed.  He  flung  himself  into  my  arms. 
Feeling,  perhaps,  that  I  received  him  coldh*,  his  first 
words  were :  '  Friend,  I  could  not  come  sooner.  The 
ocean  was  not  free  to  passenger  ships  till  1815  ;  then 
it  took  me  a  year  to  close  up  m}'  business  and  realize 
my  property.  I  have  succeeded,  my  friend.  When 
I  received  3'our  letter  in  1806,  I  started  in  a  Dutch 
vessel  to  bring  3'ou  myself  a  little  fortune  ;  but  the 
union  of  Holland  with  the  French  Empire  caused  the 
vessel  to  be  taken  by  the  English  and  sent  to  Jamaica, 
from  which  island  I  escaped  by  mere  chance.  When  I 
reached  New  York  I  found  I  was  a  victim  to  the  bank- 
ruptc}'  of  others.  In  my  absence  my  poor  Charlotte 
had  not  been  able  to  protect  herself  against  schemers. 
I  was  therefore  forced  to  build  up  once  more  the  edifice 
of  my  fortunes.  However,  it  is  all  done  now,  and  here 
we  are.  By  the  way  those  children  are  looking  at  you, 
3'OU  must  be  aware  that  we  have  often  talked  to  them 
of  their  father's  benefactor.'     '  Oh,  yes,  3^es,  monsieur  ! "' 


100  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

said  the  beautiful  Madame  Mongenod,  '  we  have  never 
passed  a  single  da}^  without  remembering  3'ou.  Your 
share  has  been  set  aside  in  all  our  affairs.  We  have 
looked  forward  eagerly  to  the  happiness  we  now  have 
in  returning  to  3^ou  your  fortune,  not  thinking  for  a 
moment  that  the  paj^ment  of  these  just  dues  can  ever 
wipe  out  our  debt  of  gratitude.'  With  those  words 
Madame  Mongenod  held  out  to  me  that  magnificent 
box  3'ou  see  over  there,  in  which  were  one  hundred  and 
fifty  notes  of  a  thousand  francs  each.'^ 

The  old  man  paused  an  instant  as  if  to  dwell  on  that 
moment ;  then  he  went  on  :  — 

"Mongenod  looked  at  me  fixedl}^  and  said:  'My 
poor  Alain,  3'ou  have  suffered,  I  know ;  but  we  did 
divine  3^our  sufferings  ;  we  did  tr3^  ever3^  means  to  send 
the  mone3^  to  3^ou,  and  failed  in  every  attempt.  You 
told  me  3'ou  could  not  many,  —  that  I  had  prevented  it. 
But  here  is  our  eldest  daughter ;  she  has  been  brought  up 
in  the  thought  of  becoming  3'our  wife,  and  she  will  have 
a  dowry  of  five  hundred  thousand  francs.'  '  God  forbid 
that  I  should  make  her  miserable ! '  I  cried  hastilv, 
looking  at  the  girl,  who  was  as  beautiful  as  her  mother 
when  I  first  saw  her.  I  drew  her  to  me  to  kiss  her 
brow.  '  Don't  be  afraid,  m3"  beautiful  child  ! '  I  said. 
'A  man  of  fifty  to  a  girl  of  seventeen?  —  never!  and 
a  man  as  plain  and  ugly  as  I  am  ?  —  never ! '  I  cried. 
^Monsieur,'  she  said,   'my  father's   benefactor   could 


The  Brotherhood  of  (yei!k}^eldtiorh.     '    '  lOl 

not  be  ugly  for  me.'  Those  words,  Sai^3'  si>oflifiih^.6'uslj,'' 
with  simple  candor,  made  me  understand  how  true  was 
all  that  Mongenod  had  said.  I  then  gave  him'  my  hand, 
and  we  embraced  each  other  again.  '  M}'  friend,'  I 
said,  '  I  have  done  you  wrong.  I  have  often  accused 
3-0U,  cursed  you.'  'You  had  the  right  to  do  so,  Alain,' 
he  replied,  blushing;  'j'ou  suffered,  and  through  me.' 
1  took  Mongenod's  note  from  my  desk  and  returned  it 
to  him.  'You  will  all  stay  and  breakfast  with  me,  I 
hope  ? '  I  said  to  the  family.  '  On  condition  that  you 
dine  with  us,'  said  Mongenod.  '  We  arrived  3'esterday. 
We  are  going  to  buy  a  house ;  and  I  mean  to  open  a 
banking  business  between  Paris  and  North  America,  so 
as  to  leave  it  to  this  fellow  here,'  he  added,  showing  me 
his  eldest  son,  who  was  fifteen  )'ears  old.  We  spent 
the  rest  of  the  day  together  and  went  to  the  play ;  for 
Mongenod  and  his  family  were  actually  hungry  for 
the  theatre.  The  next  morning  I  placed  the  whole  sum 
in  the  Funds,  and  I  now  had  in  all  about  fifteen  thou- 
sand francs  a  year.  This  fortune  enabled  me  to  give 
up  book-keeping  at  night,  and  also  to  resign  my  place 
at  the  Mont-de-piete,  to  the  great  satisfaction  of  the 
underling  who  stepped  into  my  shoes.  My  friend  died 
in  1827,  at  the  age  of  sixty-three,  after  founding  the 
great  banking-house  of  Mongenod  and  Company,  which 
made  enormous  profits  from  the  first  loans  under  the 
Restoration.     His  daugliter,  to  whom  he  subsequently 


102  Th<^  ^ BT^pl'hcr flood  of  Consolation. 

giave*  a  million  lii  dc^wrj^  married  the  Vicomte  de  Fon- 
taine. The  eldest  son,  whom  3'ou  know,  is  not  j'et 
married ;  he  lives  with  his  mother  and  brother.  We 
obtain  from  them  all  the  sums  we  need.  Frederic  (his 
father  gave  him  my  name  in  America),  —  Frederic 
Mongenod  is,  at  thirtj'-seven  years  of  age,  one  of  the 
ablest,  and  most  upright,  bankers  in  Paris.  Not  very 
long  ago  Madame  Mongenod  admitted  to  me  that  she 
had  sold  her  hair,  as  I  suspected,  for  twelve  francs  to 
buy  bread.  She  gives  me  now  twenty-four  cords  of 
wood  a  year  for  my  poor  people,  in  exchange  for  the 
half  cord  which  I  once  sent  her." 

"  This  explains  to  me  3'our  relations  with  the  house 
of  Mongenod,"  said  Godefroid, —  ''and  3'Our  fortune." 

Again  the  goodman  looked  at  Godefroid  with  a  smile, 
and  the  same  expression  of  kindly  mischief. 

"  Oh,  go  on !  "  said  Godefroid,  seeing  from  his  man- 
ner that  he  had  more  to  tell. 

"  This  conclusion,  m^^  dear  Godefroid,  made  the 
deepest  impression  upon  me.  If  the  man  who  had 
suffered  so  much,  if  mj^  friend  forgave  my  injustice, 
I  could  not  forgive  mj'self." 

"  Oh  !  "  ejaculated  Godefroid. 

"I  resolved  to  devote  all  my  superfluous  means  — 
about  ten  thousand  francs  a  year  —  to  acts  of  intelli- 
gent benevolence,"  continued  Monsieur  Alain,  tran- 
quilly.    "About   this   time   it   was   that   I   made  the 


The  Brothei'Jtood  of  Consolation.  103 

acquaintance  of  a  judge  of  the  Lower  Civil  Court  of 
the  Seine  named  Popinot,  whom  we  had  the  great  grief 
of  losing  about  three  j'ears  ago,  and  who  practised  for 
fifteen  3'ears  an  active  and  most  intelligent  charit}^  in 
the  quartier  Saint-Marcel.  It  was  he,  with  the  venerable 
vicar  of  Notre-Dame  and  Madame,  who  first  thought  of 
founding  the  work  in  which  we  are  now  co-operating, 
and  which,  since  1825,  has  quietly  done  much  good. 
This  work  has  found  its  soul  in  Madame  de  la  Chanterie, 
for  she  is  trul}^  the  inspiration  of  this  enterprise.  The 
vicar  has  known  how  to  make  us  more  religious  than 
we  were  at  first,  by  showing  us  the  necessit}'  of  being 
virtuous  ourselves  in  order  to  inspire  virtue ;  in  short, 
to  preach  by  example.  The  farther  we  have  advanced 
in  our  work,  the  happier  we  have  miutually  found  our- 
selves. And  so,  you  see,  it  really  was  the  repentance  I 
felt  for  misconceiving  the  heart  of  my  friend  which 
gave  me  the  idea  of  devoting  to  the  poor,  through  my 
own  hands,  the  fortune  he  returned  to  me,  and  which  I 
accepted  without  objecting  to  the  immensity  of  the 
sum  returned  in  proportion  to  the  sum  lent.  Its  des- 
tination justified  my  taking  it." 

This  narration,  made  quietl}^,  without  assumption, 
but  with  a  gentle  kindliness  in  accent,  look,  and  ges- 
ture, would  have  inspired  Godefroid  to  enter  this  noble 
and  sacred  association  if  his  resolution  had  not  already 
been  taken. 


104  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

*' You  know  the  world  ver}'  little,"  he  said,  "if  you 
have  such  scruples  about  a  matter  that  would  not  weigh 
on  any  other  man's  conscience." 

"I  know  only  the  unfortunate,"  said  Monsieur  Alain. 
"  I  do  not  desire  to  know  a  world  in  which  men  are 
so  little  afraid  of  judging  one  another.  But  see  !  it  is 
almost  midnight,  and  I  still  have  my  chapter  of  the 
'  Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ '  to  meditate  upon  !  Good- 
night !  " 

Godefroid  took  the  old  man's  hand  and  pressed  it, 
with  an  expression  of  admiration. 

"Can  you  tell  me  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  his- 
tory?" he  asked. 

"  Impossible,  without  her  consent,"  replied  Monsieur 
Alain  ;  "  for  it  is  connected  with  one  of  the  most  ter- 
rible events  of  Imperial  policy.  It  was  through  mj'- 
friend  Bordin  that  I  first  knew  Madame.  He  had  in 
his  possession  all  the  secrets  of  that  noble  life  ;  it  was 
he  who,  if  I  may  sa}'^  so,  led  me  to  this  house." 

"  I  thank  3'ou,"  said  Godefroid,  "  for  having  told  me 
3'our  life  ;  there  are  many  lessons  in  it  for  me." 

" Do  you  know  what  is  the  moral  of  it?" 

'^Tell  me,"  said  Godefroid,  "for  perhaps  I  may  see 
something  in  it  different  from  what  you  see." 

"Well,  it  is  this:  that  pleasure  is  an  accident  in  a 
Christian's  life  ;  it  is  not  the  aim  of  it ;  and  this  we  learn 
too  late." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  105 

*'  What  happens  when  we  turn  to  Christianit}'  ? " 
asked  Godefroid. 

"  See  !  "  said  the  goodman. 

He  pointed  with  his  finger  to  sonae  letters  of  gold  on 
a  black  ground  which  the  new  lodger  had  not  observed, 
for  this  was  the  first  time  he  had  ever  been  in  Monsieur 
Alain's  room.  Godefroid  turned  and  read  the  words : 
Transire  Benefaciendo. 

"That  is  our  motto.  If  you  become  one  of  us,  that 
will  be  your  only  commission.  AYe  read  that  commis- 
sion, which  we  have  given  to  ourselves,  at  all  times, 
in  the  morning  when  we  rise,  in  the  evening  when  we 
lie  down,  and  when  we  are  dressing.  Ah  !  if  you  did 
but  know  what  immense  pleasures  there  are  in  accom- 
plishing that  motto ! " 

/'Such  as — ?"    said  Godefroid,  hoping  for  further 
revelations. 

*'I  must  tell  3'ou  that  we  are  as  rich  as  Baron  de 
Nucingen  himself  But  the  '  Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ ' 
forbids  us  to  regard  our  wealth  as  our  own.  "We  are 
only  the  spenders  of  it ;  and  if  we  had  any  pride  in 
being  that,  we  should  not  be  worthy  of  dispensing  it. 
It  would  not  be  transire  benefacieyido ;  it  would  be 
inward  enjoyment.  For  if  you  say  to  yourself  with 
a  swelling  of  the  nostrils,  'I  play  the  part  of  Provi- 
dence ! '  (as  3'ou  might  have  thought  if  you  had  been 
in  my  place  this  morning  and  saved  the  future  lives  of 


106  The  Btvtherhood  of  Consolation. 

a  whole  family),  you  would  become  a  Sardanapalus, — 
an  evil  one !  None  of  these  gentlemen  living  here 
thinks  of  himself  when  he  does  good.  All  vanity,  all 
pride,  all  self-love,  must  be  stripped  off,  and  that  is 
hard  to  do,  —  yes,  very  hard." 

Godefroid  bade  him  good-night,  and  returned  to  his 
own  room,  deeply  affected  by  this  narrative.  But  his 
curiosity  was  more  whetted  than  satisfied,  for  the  cen- 
tral figure  of  the  picture  was  Madame  de  la  Chanterie. 
The  history  of  the  life  of  that  woman  became  of  the 
utmost  importance  to  him,  so  that  he  made  the  ob- 
taining of  it  the  object  of  his  stay  in  that  house.  He 
alread}^  perceived  in  this  association  of  five  persons  a 
vast  enterprise  of  Charity ;  but  he  thought  far  less  of 
that  than  he  did  of  its  heroine. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  107 


VIII. 

WHO    SHE    WAS  —  WIFE    AND    MOTHER. 

The  would-be  disciple  passed  many  daj's  in  observ- 
ing more  carefull}^  than  he  had  hitherto  done  the  rare 
persons  among  whom  fate  had  brought  him ;  and  he 
became  the  subject  of  a  moral  phenomenon  which 
modern  philosophers  have  despised,  —  possibly  out  of 
ignorance. 

The  sphere  in  which  he  lived  had  a  positive  action 
upon  Godefroid.  The  laws  which  regulate  the  physical 
nature  under  relation  to  the  atmospheric  environment 
in  which  it  is  developed,  rule  also  in  the  moral  nature. 
Hence  it  follows  that  the  assembling  together  of  con- 
demned prisoners  is  one  of  the  greatest  of  social  crimes  ; 
and  also  that  their  isolation  is  an  experiment  of  doubt- 
ful success.  Condemned  criminals  ought  to  be  in 
religious  institutions,  surrounded  by  prodigies  of  Good, 
instead  of  being  cast  as  they  are  into  sight  and  knowl- 
edge of  Evil  only.  The  Church  can  be  expected  to 
show  an  absolute  devotion  in  this  matter.  If  it  sends 
missionaries  to  heathen  or  savage  nations,  with  how 
much    greater  joy   would   it    welcome   the   mission   of 


108  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

redeeming  the  heathen  of  civilization  ?  for  all  criminals 
are  atheists,  and  often  without  knowing  they  are  so. 

Godefroid  found  these  five  associated  persons  en- 
dowed with  the  qualities  they  required  in  him.  They 
were  all  without  pride,  without  vanit}^,  truly  humble 
and  pious ;  also  without  any  of  the  pretension  which 
constitutes  devotion^  using  that  word  in  its  worst  sense. 
These  virtues  were  contagious ;  he  was  filled  with  a 
desire  to  imitate  these  hidden  heroes,  and  he  ended  by 
passionately  studying  the  book  he  had  begun  by  de- 
spising. Within  two  weeks  he  reduced  his  views  of 
life  to  its  simplest  lines,  — to  what  it  really  is  when  we 
consider  it  from  the  higher  point  of  view  to  which  the 
Divine  spirit  leads  us.  His  curiosity  —  worldly  at  first, 
and  excited  by  many  vulgar  and  material  motives  — 
purified  itself ;  if  he  did  not  renounce  it  altogether,  the 
fault  was  not  his  ;  any  one  would  have  found  it  difficult 
to  resign  an  interest  in  Madame  de  la  Chanterie ;  but 
Godefroid  showed,  without  intending  it,  a  discretion 
which  was  appreciated  by  these  persons,  in  whom  the 
divine  Spirit  had  developed  a  marvellous  power  of  the 
faculties,  —  as,  indeed,  it  often  does  among  recluses. 
The  concentration  of  the  moral  forces,  no  matter  under 
what  system  it  ma}^  be  effected,  increases  the  compass 
of  them  tenfold. 

''Our  friend  is  not  yet  converted,"  said  the  good 
Abbe  de  Veze,  "but  he  is  seeking  to  be." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  109 

An  unforeseen  circumstance  brought  about  the  reve- 
lation of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  history  to  Gode- 
froid ;  and  so  fully  was  this  made  to  him  that  the 
overpowering  interest  she  excited  in  his  soul  was  com- 
pletely satisfied. 

The  public  mind  was  at  that  time  much  occupied  b}- 
one  of  those  horrible  criminal  trials  which  mark  the 
annals  of  our  police-courts.  This  trial  had  gathered 
its  chief  interest  from  the  character  of  the  criminals 
themselves,  whose  audacity,  superior  intelligence  in 
evil,  and  cj'nical  replies,  had  horrified  the  community. 
It  is  a  matter  worthy  of  remark  that  no  newspaper  ever 
found  its  way  into  the  hotel  de  la  Chanterie,  and  Gode- 
froid  only  heard  of  the  rejection  of  the  criminals'  appeal 
from  his  master  in  book-keeping ;  for  the  trial  itself 
had  taken  place  some  time  before  he  came  to  live  in 
his  new  abode. 

"  Do  you  ever  encounter,"  he  said  to  his  new  friends, 
^'  such  atrocious  villains  as  those  men  ?  and  if  3'ou  do 
encounter  them,  how  do  you  manage  them?" 

"  In  the  first  place,"  said  Monsieur  Nicolas,  "  there 
are  no  atrocious  villains.  There  are  diseased  natures, 
to  be  cared  for  in  as3'lums ;  but  outside  of  those  rare 
medical  cases,  we  find  only  persons  who  are  without 
religion,  or  who  reason  ill ;  and  the  mission  of  charity 
is  to  teach  them  the  right  use  of  reason,  to  encourage 
the  weak,  and  guide  aright  those  who  go  astray." 


110  The  Brotherhood  of  Coyisolation. 

"And,"  said  the  Abbe  de  Veze,  "all  is  possible  to 
such  teachers,  for  God  is  with  them." 

"  If  thej'^  were  to  send  j^ou  those  criminals,  you  could 
do  nothing  with  them,  could  you?"  asked  Godefroid. 

"  The  time  would  be  too  short/'  remarked  Monsieur 
Alain. 

"  In  general,"  said  Monsieur  Nicolas,  "  persons  turn 
over  to  religion  souls  which  have  reached  the  last 
stages  of  evil,  and  leave  it  no  time  to  do  its  work. 
The  criminals  of  whom  you  speak  were  men  of  remark- 
able vigor ;  could  they  have  been  within  our  hands  in 
time  they  might  have  become  distinguished  men ;  but 
as  soon  as  they  committed  a  murder,  it  was  no  longer 
possible  to  interfere ;  they  then  belonged  to  human 
justice." 

"  That  must  mean,"  said  Godefroid,  "that  3'ou  are 
against  the  penalty  of  death?" 

Monsieur  Nicolas  rose  hastil}^  and  left  the  room. 

"  Do  not  ever  mention  the  penalt}'  of  death  again 
before  Monsieur  Nicolas,"  said  Monsieur  Alain.  "  He 
recognized  in  a  criminal  at  whose  execution  he  was 
officiall}'  present  his  natural  son." 

"And  the  son  was  innocent!"  added  Monsieur 
Joseph. 

Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  who  had  been  absent  for  a 
while,  returned  to  the  salon  at  this  moment. 

"But  you  must  admit,"  said  Godefroid,  addressing 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  Ill 

Monsieur  Joseph,  ' '  that  society  cannot  exist  without 
the  death  penalt3',  and  that  those  persons  who  to- 
morrow morning  will  have  their  heads  cut — " 

Godefroid  felt  his  mouth  suddenly  closed  by  a  vig- 
orous hand,  and  he  saw  the  abbe  leading  awa}^  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie  in  an  almost  fainting  condition. 

"What  have  3'ou  done?"  Monsieur  Joseph  said  to 
him.  "  Take  him  awa}^,  Alain  !  "  he  added,  removing 
the  hand  with  which  he  had  gagged  Godefroid.  Then 
he  followed  the  Abbe  de  Veze  into  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie's  room. 

"  Come  !  "  said  Monsieur  Alain  to  Godefroid  ;  "  3'ou 
have  made  it  essential  that  I  should  tell  you  the  secrets 
of  Madame's  life." 

They  were  presently  sitting  in  the  old  man's  room. 

"Well?"  said  Godefroid,  whose  face  showed  plainly 
his  regret  for  having  been  the  cause  of  something 
which,  in  that  peaceful  house,  might  be  called  a 
catastrophe. 

"I  am  waiting  till  Manon  comes  to  reassure  us," 
replied  the  goodman,  listening  to  the  steps  of  the  maid 
upon  the  staircase. 

"Madame  is  better,"  said  Manon.  "Monsieur 
I'abbe  has  deceived  her  as  to  what  was  said."  And 
she  looked  at  Godefroid  angril}-. 

"  Good  God  !  "  cried  the  poor  fellow,  in  distress,  the 
tears  coming  into  his  ej^es. 


112  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

*'  Come,  sit  down,"  said  Monsieur  Alain,  sitting 
down  himself.  Then  he  made  a  pause  as  if  to  gather 
up  his  ideas.  "I  don't  know,"  he  went  on,  "  if  I 
have  the  talent  to  worthil}"  relate  a  life  so  cruelly 
tried.  You  must  excuse  me  if  the  words  of  so  poor  a 
speaker  as  I  are  beneath  the  level  of  its  actions  and 
catastrophes.  Remember  that  it  is  long  since  I  left 
school,  and  that  I  am  the  child  of  a  century  in  which 
men  cared  more  for  thought  than  for  effect,  —  a  prosaic 
centurj'  which  knew  only  how  to  call  things  by  their 
right  names." 

Godefroid  made  an  acquiescing  gesture,  with  an  ex- 
pression of  sincere  admiration,  and  said  simply,  "  I  am 
listening." 

''You  have  just  had  a  proof,  my  young  friend,"  re- 
sumed the  old  man,  "that  it  is  impossible  j^ou  should 
remain  among  us  without  knowing  at  least  some  of  the 
terrible  facts  in  the  life  of  that  saintly  woman.  There 
are  ideas  and  illusions  and  fatal  words  which  are  com- 
pletely interdicted  in  this  house,  lest  they  reopen 
wounds  in  Madame's  heart,  and  cause  a  suffering 
which,  if  again  renewed,  might  kill  her." 

"Good  God!"  cried  Godefroid,  "what  have  I 
done  ?  " 

"If  Monsieur  Joseph  had  not  stopped  the  words  on 
your  lips,  you  were  about  to  speak  of  that  fatal  instru- 
ment of  death,   and   that  would   have  stricken  down 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  113 

Madame  de  la  Chanterie  like  a  thunderbolt.  It  is  time 
3011  should  know  all,  for  you  will  really  belong  to  us 
before  long,  —  we  all  think  so.  Here,  then,  is  the  his- 
tory of  her  life  :  — 

"  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,"  he  went  on,  after  a 
pause,  "  comes  from  one  of  the  first  families  of  Lower 
Normandj'.  Her  maiden  name  was  Mademoiselle 
Barbe-Philiberte  de  Champignelles,  of  the  younger 
branch  of  that  house.  She  was  destined  to  take  the 
veil  unless  she  could  make  a  marriage  which  renounced 
on  the  husband's  side  the  dowry  her  family  could  not 
give  her.  This  was  frequentl^^  the  case  in  the  families 
of  poor  nobles. 

"A  Sieur  de  la  Chanterie,  whose  family  had  fallen 
into  obscurity,  though  it  dates  from  the  Crusade  of 
Philip  Augustus,  was  anxious  to  recover  the  rank  and 
position  which  this  ancient  lineage  properl}'  gave  him 
in  the  province  of  Normand}'.  This  gentleman  had 
doublj^  derogated  from  his  rightful  station  ;  for  he  had 
amassed  a  fortune  of  nearly  a  million  of  francs  as 
purve3'or  to  the  armies  of  the  king  at  the  time  of  the 
war  in  Hanover.  The  old  man  had  a  son  ;  and  this 
son,  presuming  on  his  father's  wealth  (greatl^^  exag- 
gerated by  rumor),  was  leading  a  life  in  Paris  that 
greatly  disquieted  his  father. 

"The  worth  of  Mademoiselle  de  Champignelles's 
character  was  well  known  in  the  Bessin,  —  that  beauti- 

8 


114  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

fill  region  of  Lower  Normandy  near  Bayeux,  where  the 
family  lived.  The  old  man,  whose  little  estate  of  la 
Chanterie  was  between  Caen  and  Saint-L6,  often  heard 
regrets  expressed  before  him  that  so  perfect  a  young 
girl,  and  one  so  capable  of  rendering  a  husband  happy, 
should  be  condemned  to  pass  her  life  in  a  convent. 
When,  on  reflection,  he  expressed  a  desire  to  know 
more  of  the  young  lady,  the  hope  was  held  out  to  him 
of  obtaining  the  hand  of  Mademoiselle  PhiUberte  for 
his  son,  provided  he  would  take  her  without  dowr3\ 
He  went  to  Bayeux,  had  several  interviews  with  the 
Champignelles's  family,  and  was  completely  won  hy 
the  noble  qualities  of  the  j^oung  girl. 

"At  sixteen  years  of  age,  Mademoiselle  de  Cham- 
pignelles  gave  promise  of  what  she  would  ultimately 
become.  It  was  easy  to  see  in  her  a  living  pietj',  an 
unalterable  good  sense,  an  inflexible  uprightness,  and 
one  of  those  souls  which  never  detach  themselves  from 
an  affection  under  any  compulsion.  The  old  father, 
enriched  by  his  extortions  in  the  arm}',  recognized  in 
this  charming  girl  a  woman  who  could  restrain  his  son 
by  the  power  of  virtue,  and  by  the  ascendency  of  a 
nature  that  was  firm  without  rigidit}'. 

"You  have  seen  her,"  said  Monsieur  Alain,  pausing 
in  his  narrative,  "  and  you  know  that  no  one  can  be 
gentler  than  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  ;  and  also,  I  may 
tell  you,  tliat  no  one  is  more  confiding.     She  has  kept. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  115 

even  to  her  declining  3'ears,  the  candor  and  simplicity 
of  innocence ;  she  has  never  been  willing  to  believe  in 
evil,  and  the  little  mistrust  3'ou  may  have  noticed  in  her 
is  due  only  to  her  terrible  misfortunes. 

"  The  old  man,"  said  Monsieur  Alain,  continuing, 
"  agreed  with  the  Champignelles  famil}'  to  give  a  re- 
ceipt for  the  legal  dower  of  Mademoiselle  Philiberte 
(this  was  necessary  in  those  days)  ;  but  in  return,  the 
Champignelles,  who  were  allied  to  many  of  the  great 
families,  promised  to  obtain  the  erection  of  the  little 
fief  of  la  Chanterie  into  a  baron}^ ;  and  the}'  kept  their 
word.  The  aunt  of  the  future  husband,  Madame  de 
Boisfrelon,  the  widow  of  a  parliamentary  councillor, 
promised  to  bequeath  her  whole  fortune  to  her  nephew. 

"•  When  these  arrangements  had  been  completed 
by  the  two  families,  the  father  sent  for  the  son.  At 
this  time  the  latter  was  Master  of  petitions  to  the 
Grand  Council.  He  was  twenty-five  years  of  age,  and 
had  alread\'  lived  a  life  of  follv  wnth  all  the  3'oung 
seigneurs  of  the  period ;  in  fact,  the  old  purve3'or  had 
been  forced  more  than  once  to  pay  his  debts.  The 
poor  father,  foreseeing  further  follies,  was  only  too 
glad  to  make  a  settlement  on  his  daughter-in-law  of 
a  certain  sum ;  and  he  entailed  the  estate  of  la  Chan- 
terie on  the  heirs  male  of  the  marriage. 

"But  the  Revolution,"  said  Monsieur  Alain  in  a 
parenthesis,  "  made  that  last  precaution  useless. 


116  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"  Gifted  with  the  beaut}"  of  an  angel,"  he  con- 
tinued, ''  and  with  wonderful  grace  and  agility  in  all 
exercises  of  the  bodj^  the  young  Master  of  petitions 
possessed  the  gift  of  charm.  Mademoiselle  de  Cham- 
pignelles  became,  as  3'ou  can  readily"  believe,  ver}'  much 
in  love  with  her  husband.  The  old  man,  delighted  with 
the  outset  of  the  marriage,  and  believing  in  the  reform 
of  his  son,  sent  the  3'oung  couple  to  Paris.  All  this 
happened  about  the  beginning  of  the  year  1788. 

"  Nearl}'  a  whole  3'ear  of  hfippiness  followed.  Ma- 
dame de  la  Chanterie  enjoyed  during  that  time  the 
tenderest  care  and  the  most  delicate  attentions  that 
a  man  deeply  in  love  can  bestow  upon  a  loving  woman. 
However  short  it  may  have  been,  the  hone3'moon  did 
shine  into  the  heart  of  that  noble  and  most  unfortunate 
woman.  You  know  that  in  those  da3's  women  nursed 
their  children.  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  had  a  daugh- 
ter. That  period  during  which  a  woman  ought  to  be 
the  object  of  redoubled  care  and  tenderness  proved,  in 
this  case,  the  beginning  of  untold  miseries.  The  Master 
of  petitions  was  obliged  to  sell  all  the  propert3'  he  could 
lay  his  hands  on  to  pa3"  former  debts  (which  he  had 
not  acknowledged  to  his  father)  and  fresh  losses  at 
pla3\  Then  the  National  Assembh"  decreed  the  disso- 
lution of  the  Grand  Council,  the  parliament,  and  all 
the  law  offices  so  dearly  bought. 

"The   young  household,   increased    by   a  daughter, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  117 

was  soon  without  other  means  than  those  settled  upon 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  by  her  father-in-law.  In 
twenty  months  that  charming  woman,  now  only  seven- 
teen and  a  half  years  old,  was  obliged  to  live  —  she  and 
the  child  she  was  nursing  —  in  an  obscure  quarter,  and 
by  the  labor  of  her  hands.  She  was  then  entirely  aban- 
doned by  her  husband,  who  fell  by  degrees  lower  and 
lower,  into  the  society  of  women  of  the  worst  kind. 
Never  did  she  reproach  her  husband,  never  has  she 
allowed  herself  to  blame  him.  She  has  sometimes  told 
us  how,  during  those  wretched  days,  she  would  pray 
for  her  'dear  Henri.' 

"That  scamp  was  named  Henri,"  said  the  worthy 
man  interrupting  himself.  "  We  never  mention  that 
name  here,  nor  that  of  Henriette.     I  resume : 

' '  Never  leaving  her  little  room  in  the  rue  de  la 
Corderie  du  Temple,  except  to  buy  provisions  or  to 
fetch  her  work,  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  contrived  to 
get  along,  thanks  to  a  hundred  francs  which  her 
father-in-law,  touched  by  her  goodness,  sent  to  her 
once  a  month.  Nevertheless,  foreseeing  that  that 
resource  might  fail  her,  the  poor  young  woman  had 
taken  up  the  hard  and  toilsome  work  of  corset-making  in 
the  service  of  a  celebrated  dressmaker.  This  precaution 
proved  a  wise  one.  The  father  died,  and  his  property 
was  obtained  by  the  son  (the  old  monarchical  laws  of 
entail  being  then  overthrown)  and  speedily  dissipated 


118  Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

by  him.  The  former  Master  of  petitions  was  now  one 
of  the  most  ferocious  presidents  of  the  Revohitionary 
tribunals  of  that  period ;  he  became  the  terror  of 
Normandy,  and  was  able  to  satis'f}"  all  his  passions. 
Imprisoned  in  his  turn  after  the  fall  of  Robespierre, 
the  hatred  of  his  department  doomed  him  to  certain 
death. 

"Madame  de  la  Chanterie  heard  of  this  through  a 
letter  of  farewell  which  her  husband  wrote  to  her. 
Instantly,  giving  her  little  girl  to  the  care  of  a  neighbor, 
she  went  to  the  town  where  that  wretch  was  imprisoned, 
taking  with  her  the  few  louis  which  were  all  she  owned. 
These  louis  enabled  her  to  make  her  waj^  into  the  prison. 
She  succeeded  in  saving  her  husband  hy  dressing  him 
in  her  own  clothes,  under  circumstances  almost 
identical  with  those  which,  sometime  later,  were  so 
serviceable  to  Madame  de  la  Valette.  She  was  con- 
demned to  death,  but  the  government  was  ashamed  to 
carry  out  the  sentence  ;  and  the  Revolutionary  tribunal 
(the  one  over  which  her  husband  had  formevl}'  presided) 
connived  at  her  escape.  She  returned  to  Paris  on  foot, 
without  means,  sleeping  in  farm  buildings  and  fed  by 
charity." 

"  Good  God  !  "  cried  Godefroid. 

"  Ah  !  wait,"  said  Monsieur  Alain  ;  "  that  is  nothing. 
In  eight  3'ears  the  poor  woman  saw  her  husband  three 
times.     The  first  time  he  stayed  twenty-four  hours  in 


Tlie  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation.  119 

the  humble  lodging  of  his  wife,  and  carried  away  with 
him  all  her  mone}' ;  having  showered  her  with  marks  of 
tenderness  and  made  her  believe  in  his  complete 
conversion.  '  I  could  not,'  she  said,  '  refuse  a  husband 
for  whom  I  prayed  daily  and  of  whom  I  thought 
exclusively.'  On  the  second  occasion,  Monsieur  de 
la  Chanterie  arrived  almost  dying,  and  with  what  an 
illness !  She  nursed  him  and  saved  his  life.  Then  she 
tried  to  bring  him  to  better  sentiments  and  a  decent 
life.  After  promising  all  that  angel  asked,  the  jacobin 
plunged  back  into  frightful  profligacy,  and  finally 
escaped  the  hands  of  justice  onl}'  by  again  taking 
refuge  with  his  wife,  in  whose  care  he  died  in  safety. 

"  Oh !  but  that  is  nothing ! "  cried  the  goodman, 
seeing  the  pain  on  Godefroid's  face.  "No one,  in  the 
world  in  which  he  lived,  had  known  he  was  a  married 
man.  Two  years  after  his  death  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  discovered  that  a  second  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  existed,  widowed  like  herself,  and,  like  her, 
ruined.  That  bigamist  had  found  two  angels  incapable 
of  discarding  him. 

"  Towards  1803,"  resumed  Monsieur  Alain  after  a 
pause,  "  Monsieur  de  Boisfrelon,  uncle  of  Madame  de 
la  Chanterie,  came  to  Paris,  his  name  having  been 
erased  from  the  list  of  emigres,  and  brought  Madame 
the  sum  of  two  hundred  thousand  francs  which  her 
father-in-law,  the  old  purvej^or,  had  formerly-  entrusted 


120  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

to  him  for  the  benefit  of  his  son's  children.  He 
persuaded  the  widow  to  return  to  Normandj' ;  where 
she  completed  the  education  of  her  daugliter  and 
purchased,  on  excellent  terms  and  still  by  the  advice 
of  her  uncle,  a  patrimonial  estate." 

"  Ah  !  "  cried  Godefroid. 

^^All  that  is  still  nothing,"  said  Monsieur  Alain; 
^^  we  have  not  reached  the  period  of  storms  and  dark- 
ness.    I  resume : 

*^In  1807,  after  four  j'ears  of  rest  and  peace, 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  married  her  daughter  to  a 
gentleman  of  rank,  whose  piety,  antecedents,  and 
fortune  offered  every  guarantee  that  could  be  given,  — 
a  man  who,  to  use  a  popular  saying,  '  was  after  every 
one's  own  heart,'  in  the  best  societj^  of  the  provincial 
cit}^  where  Madame  and  her  daughter  passed  their 
winters.  I  should  tell  you  that  this  society  was  com- 
posed of  seven  or  eight  families  belonging  to  the 
highest  nobility  in  France  :  d'Esgrignon,  Troisville, 
Casteran,  Nouatre,  etc.  At  the  end  of  eighteen  months 
the  baron  deserted  his  wife,  and  disappeared  in  Paris, 
where  he  changed  his  name. 

''Madame  de  la  Chanterie  never  knew  the  causes  of 
this  desertion  until  the  lightning  of  a  dreadful  storm 
revealed  them.  Her  daughter,  brought  up  with  anxious 
care  and  trained  in  the  purest  religious  sentiments, 
kept   total   silence  as   to   her  troubles.     This  lack  of 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  121 

confidence  in  her  mother  was  a  painful  blow  to  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie.  Already  she  had  several  times  noticed 
in  her  daughter  indications  of  the  reckless  disposition 
of  the  father,  increased  in  the  daughter  b}'  an  almost 
virile  strength  of  will. 

"The  husband,  however,  abandoned  his  home  of  his 
own  free  will,  leaving  his  affairs  in  a  pitiable  condition. 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  is,  even  to  this  day,  amazed  at 
the  catastrophe,  which  no  human  foresight  could  have 
prevented.  The  persons  she  prudently  consulted  before 
the  marriage  had  assured  her  that  the  suitor's  fortune 
was  clear  and  sound,  and  that  no  mortgages  were  on  his 
estate.  Nevertheless  it  appeared,  after  the  husband's 
departure,  that  for  ten  3'ears  his  debts  had  exceeded 
the  entire  value  of  his  property.  Everjl-hing  was  there- 
fore sold,  and  the  poor  young  wife,  now  reduced  to  her 
own  means,  came  back  to  her  mother.  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  knew  later  that  the  most  honorable  persons 
of  the  province  had  vouched  for  her  son-in-law  in 
their  own  interests ;  for  he  owed  them  all  large  sums 
of  mone}',  and  they  looked  upon  his  marriage  with 
Mademoiselle  de  la  Chanterie  as  a  means  to  recover 
them. 

"  There  were,  however,  other  reasons  for  this  catas- 
trophe, which  you  will  find  later  in  a  confidential  paper 
written  for  the  eyes  of  the  Emperor.  Moreover,  this 
man  had  long  courted   the  good-will  of  the  royalist 


122  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

families  by  his  devotion  to  the  royal  cause  during  the 
Revolution.  He  was  one  of  Louis  XVIII. 's  most  active 
emissaries  and  had  taken  part  after  1793  in  all  con- 
spiracies, —  escaping  their  penalties,  however,  with  such 
singular  adroitness  that  he  came,  in  the  end,  to  be 
distrusted.  Thanked  for  his  services  by  Louis  XVIIL, 
but  completelj'  set  aside  in  the  roj'alist  affairs,  he  had 
returned  to  live  on  his  propert}',  now  much  encumbered 
with  debt. 

"These  antecedents  were  then  obscure  (the  persons 
initiated  into  the  secrets  of  the  roj'al  closet  kept 
silence  about  so  dangerous  a  coadjutor),  and  he  was 
therefore  received  with  a  species  of  reverence  in  a  city 
devoted,  to  the  Bourbons,  where  the  cruellest  deeds  of 
the  Chouannerie  were  accepted  as  legitimate  warfare. 
The  d'Esgrignons,  Casterans,  the  Chevalier  de  Valois, 
in  short,  the  whole  aristocracy  and  the  Church  opened 
their  arms  to  this  roj^alist  diplomat  and  drew  him  into 
their  circle.  Their  protection  was  encouraged  by  the 
desire  of  his  creditors  for  the  payment  of  his  debts. 
For  three  3'ears  this  man,  who  was  a  villain  at  heart,  a 
pendant  to  the  late  Baron  de  la  Chanterie,  contrived  to 
restrain  his  vices  and  assume  the  appearance  of  morality 
and  religion. 

"  During  the  first  months  of  his  marriage  he  exerted  a 
sort  of  spell  over  his  wife  ;  he  tried  to  corrupt  her 
mind  by  his  doctrines  (if  it  can  be  said  that  atheism 


The  Brothe7'hood  of  Consolation.  123 

is  a  doctrine)  and  by  the  jesting  tone  in  whicli  be  spoke 
of  sacred  principles.  From  the  time  of  bis  return  to 
the  provinces  this  political  manoeuvrer  had  an  intimacy 
with  a  3'oung  man,  overwhelmed  with  debt  like  himself, 
but  whose  natural  character  was  as  frank  and  coura- 
geous as  the  baron's  was  hypocritical  and  base.  This 
frequent  guest,  whose  accomplishments,  strong  char- 
acter, and  adventurous  life  were  calculated  to  influence 
a  3'Oung  girl's  mind,  was  an  instrument  in  the  hands  of 
the  husband  to  bring  the  wife  to  adopt  his  theories. 
Never  did  she  let  her  mother  know  the  ab3'ss  into 
which  her  fate  had  cast  her. 

"  We  may  well  distrust  all  human  prudence  when  we 
think  of  the  infinite  precautions  taken  by  Madame  de 
la  Chanterie  in  marrying  her  onty  daughter.  The  blow, 
when  it  came  to  a  life  so  devoted,  so  pure,  so  truly 
religious  as  that  of  a  woman  alread}'  tested  b}'  many 
trials,  gave  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  a  distrust  of  her- 
self which  served  to  isolate  her  from  her  daughter;  and 
all  the  more  because  her  daughter,  in  compensation  for 
her  misfortunes,  exacted  complete  libert}',  ruled  her 
mother,  and  was  even,  at  times,  unkind  to  her. 

"Wounded  thus  in  all  her  affections,  mistaken  in  her 
devotion  and  love  for  her  husband,  to  whom  she  had 
sacrificed  without  a  word  her  happiness,  her  fortune, 
and  her  life ;  mistaken  in  the  education  exclusiveh' 
religious  which  she  had  given  to  her  daughter  ;  mistaken 


124  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

in  the  confidence  she  had  placed  in  others  in  the  affair 
of  her  daughter's  marriage ;  and  obtaining  no  justice 
from  the  heart  in  which  she  had  sown  none  but  noble 
sentiments,  she  united  herself  still  more  closely  to  God 
as  the  hand  of  trouble  lay  heav}'  upon  her.  She  was 
indeed  almost  a  nun ;  going  daily  to  church,  perform- 
ing cloistral  penances,  and  practising  economy  that  she 
might  have  means  to  help  the  poor. 

"  Could  there  be,  up  to  this  point,  a  saintlier  life  or 
one  more  tried  than  that  of  this  noble  woman,  so  gentle 
under  misfortune,  so  brave  in  danger,  and  always 
Christian?"  said  Monsieur  Alain,  appealing  to  Gode- 
froid.  ^'  You  know  Madame  now,  —  3'ou  know  if  she  is 
wanting  in  sense,  judgment,  reflection  ;  in  fact,  she  has 
those  qualities  to  the  highest  degree.  Well !  the  mis- 
fortunes I  have  now  told  you,  which  might  be  said  to 
make  her  life  surpass  all  others  in  adversity,  are  as 
nothing  to  those  that  were  still  in  store  for  this  poor 
woman.  But  let  us  now  concern  ourselves  exclusivel}" 
with  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  daughter  "  said  the  old 
man,  resuming  his  narrative. 

"  At  eighteen  3'ears  of  age,  the  period  of  her  marriage. 
Mademoiselle  de  la  Chanterie  was  a  3'oung  girl  of 
delicate  complexion,  brown  in  tone  with  a  brilliant 
color,  graceful  in  shape,  and  ver}^  prett}.  Above  a 
forehead  of  great  beauty  was  a  mass  of  dark  hair 
which  harmonized  with  the  brown  ej-es  and  the  general 


The  Brofherltood  of  Consolation.  125 

ga3'ety  of  her  expression.  A  certain  cliiintiness  of 
feature  was  misleading  as  to  her  true  character  and  her 
almost  virile  decision.  She  had  small  hands  and  small 
feet ;  in  fact,  there  was  something  fragile  about  her 
whole  person  which  excluded  the  idea  of  vigor  and 
determination.  Having  alwa3's  lived  beside  her  mother, 
she  had  a  most  perfect  innocence  of  thought  and 
behavior  and  a  reallj^  remarkable  piety.  This  young 
girl,  like  her  mother,  was  fanatically  attached  to  the 
Bourbons ;  she  was  therefore  a  bitter  enemy  to  the 
Revolution,  and  regarded  the  dominion  of  Napoleon  as 
a  curse  inflicted  b}'  Providence  upon  France  in  punish- 
ment of  the  crimes  of  1 793. 

"  The  conformitj'  of  opinion  on  this  subject  between 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  her  daughter,  and  the 
daughter's  suitor,  was  one  of  the  determining  reasons 
of  the  marriage. 

"  The  friend  of  the  husband  had  commanded  a  body 
of  Chouans  at  the  time  that  hostilities  were  renewed  in 
1 799  ;  and  it  seems  that  the  baron's  object  (Madame 
de  la  Chanterie's  son-in-law  was  a  baron)  in  fostering 
the  intimac}'  between  his  wife  and  his  friend  was  to 
obtain,  through  her  influence,  certain  succor  from  that 
friend. 

"This  requires  a  few  words  of  explanation,"  said 
Monsieur  Alain,  interrupting  his  narrative,  "about  an 
association  which  in  those  days  made  a  great  deal  of 


126  The  Bi'otherhood  of  Consolation. 

noise.  I  mean  the  '  Chauffeurs.'  ^  Every  province  in 
the  west  of  France  was  at  that  time  more  or  less  over- 
run with  these  '  brigands,'  whose  object  was  far  less 
pillage  than  a  resurrection  of  the  ro3'alist  warfare.  They 
profited,  so  it  was  said,  by  the  great  number  of  '  refrac- 
tories,'—  the  name  applied  to  those  who  evaded  the 
conscription,  which  was  at  that  time,  as  you  probably 
know,  enforced  to  actual  abuse. 

"Between  Mortagne  and  Rennes,  and  even  be3'oud, 
as  far  as  the  banks  of  the  Loire,  nocturnal  expeditions 
were  organized,  which  attacked,  especiall}^  in  Nor- 
mandy, the  holders  of  property  bought  from  the 
National  domain.^  These  armed  bands  sent  terror 
throughout  those  regions.  I  am  not  misleading  3'ou 
when  I  ask  3'ou  to  observe  that  in  certain  departments 
the  action  of  the  laws  was  for  a  long  time  paralyzed. 

1  Chauffeurs.  This  name  appHes  to  royalists  who  robbed  the 
mail-coaches  conveying  government  funds,  and  levied  tribute  on 
those  who  had  bought  the  confiscated  property  of  emigres  at  the 
West.  When  the  Thermidorian  reaction  began,  after  the  fall  of 
Robespierre,  other  companies  of  royalists,  chiefly  young  nobles  who 
had  not  emigrated,  Avere  formed  at  the  South  and  East  under  various 
names,  such  as  "  The  Avengers,"  and  "  The  Company  of  Jehu,"  who 
stopped  the  diligences  conveying  government  money,  which  they 
transmitted  to  Brittany  and  La  Vendee  for  the  support  of  the 
royalist  troops.  They  regarded  this  as  legitimate  warfare,  and  were 
scrupulous  not  to  touch  private  property.  When  captured,  how- 
ever, they  were  tried  and  executed  as  highwaymen.  —  Tr. 

2  The  National  domain  was  the  name  given  to  the  confiscated 
property  of  the  emigres,  which  was  sold  from  time  to  time  at  auc- 
tion to  the  highest  bidder.  —  Tr. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  127 

"  These  last  echoes  of  the  civil  war  made  much  less 
noise  than  3'ou  would  imagine,  accustomed  as  we  are 
now  to  the  frightful  publicit}'  given  b}^  the  press  to 
every  trial,  even  the  least  important,  whether  political 
or  individual.  The  system  of  the  Imperial  government 
was  that  of  all  absolute  governments.  The  censor 
allowed  nothing  to  be  published  in  the  matter  of 
politics  except  accomplished  facts,  and  those  were 
travestied.  If  you  will  take  the  trouble  to  look 
through  files  of  the  '  Moniteur '  and  the  other  news- 
papers of  that  time,  even  those  of  the  West,  you  will 
not  find  a  word  about  the  four  or  five  criminal  trials 
which  cost  the  lives  of  sixty  or  eighty  '  brigands.'  The 
term  brigands^  applied  during  the  revolutionar}-  period 
to  the  Vendeans,  Chouans,  and  all  those  who  took  up 
arms  for  the  house  of  Bourbon,  was  afterwards  con- 
tinued judicially  under  the  Empire  against  all  royalists 
accused  of  plots.  To  some  ardent  and  lo3'al  natures 
the  emperor  and  his  government  were  the  enem}' ;  an}- 
form  of  warfare  against  them  was  legitimate.  I  am 
only  explaining  to  you  these  opinions,  not  justifying 
them. 

"  Now,"  he  said,  after  one  of  those  pauses  which  are 
necessary  in  such  long  narratives,  "if  you  realize  how 
these  ro3'alists,  ruined  b}*  the  civil  war  of  1793,  were 
dominated  by  violent  passions,  and  how  some  excep- 
tional natures  (like  that  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's 


128  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

son-in-law  and  his  friend)  were  eaten  up  with  desires 
of  all  kinds,  3'ou  ma}'  be  able  to  understand  how  it  was 
that  the  acts  of  brigandage  which  their  political  views 
justified  when  emplo3^ed  against  the  government  in  the 
service  of  the  good  cause,  might  in  some  cases  be  com- 
mitted for  personal  ends. 

"The  3'ounger  of  the  two  men  had  been  for  some 
time  emplo^'ed  in  collecting  the  scattered  fragments  of 
Chouannerie,  and  was  holding  them  read}"  to  act  at  an 
opportune  moment.  There  came  a  terrible  crisis  in  the 
emperor's  career  when,  shut  up  in  the  island  of  Lobau, 
he  seemed  about  to  give  wa}"  under  the  combined  and 
simultaneous  attack  of  England  and  Austria.  Tliis  was 
the  moment  for  the  Chouan  uprising  ;  but  just  as  it  was 
about  to  take  place,  the  victor}^  of  Wagram  rendered 
the  conspiracy  in  the  provinces  powerless. 

"This  expectation  of  exciting  civil  war  in  Brittan}^ 
La  Vendse,  and  part  of  Normand}',  coincided  in  time 
with  the  final  wreck  of  the  baron's  fortune ;  and  this 
wreck,  coming  at  this  time,  led  him  to  undertake  an 
expedition  to  capture  funds  of  the  government  which 
he  might  apply  to  the  liquidation  of  the  claims  upon 
his  property.  But  his  wife  and  friend  refused  to  take 
part  in  applying  to  private  interests  the  money  taken 
b}'  armed  force  from  the  Receiver's  oflSces  and  the 
couriers  and  post-carriages  of  the  government,  — 
money  taken,  as  they  thought,  justifiabl}'  by  the  rules 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  129 

of  war  to  pay  the  regiments  of  '  refractories '  and 
Chouans,  and  purchase  the  arms  and  ammunition  with 
which  to  equip  them.  At  last,  after  an  angry  discus- 
sion in  which  the  young  leader,  supported  by  the  wife, 
positively  refused  to  hand  over  to  the  husband  a  por- 
tion of  a  large  sum  of  money  which  the  young  leader 
had  seized  for  the  benefit  of  the  royal  armies  from  the 
treasury  of  the  West,  the  baron  suddenly  and  mysteri- 
ously disappeared,  to  avoid  arrest  for  debt,  having  no 
means  left  by  which  to  ward  it  off.  Poor  Madame  de 
la  Chanterie  was  whoU}'  ignorant  of  all  these  facts  ;  but 
even  the}'  are  nothing  to  the  plot  still  hidden  behind 
these  preliminary  facts. 

"  It  is  too  late  to-night,"  said  Monsieur  Alain,  look- 
ing at  his  little  clock,  "to  go  on  with  my  narrative, 
which  would  take  me,  in  any  case,  a  long  time  to  finish 
in  my  own  words.  Old  Bordin,  m}'  friend,  whose  man- 
agement of  the  famous  Simeuse  case  had  won  him 
much  credit  in  the  ro3'alist  party,  and  who  pleaded  in 
the  well-known  criminal  affair  called  that  of  the  Chauf- 
feurs de  Mortagne,  gave  me,  after  I  was  installed  in 
this  house,  two  legal  papers  relating  to  the  terrible 
history  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  her  daughter. 
I  kept  them  because  Bordin  died  soon  after,  before  I 
had  a  chance  to  return  them.  You  shall  read  them. 
You  will  find  the  facts  much  more  succinctl}'  stated  than 
I  could  state  them.    Those  facts  are  so  numerous  that  I 

9 


130  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

should  onl}'^  lose  myself  in  the  details  and  confuse  them, 
whereas  in  these  papers  you  have  them  in  a  legal  sum- 
mary. To-morrow,  if  you  come  to  me,  I  will  finish 
telling  you  all  that  relates  to  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  ; 
for  you  will  then  know  the  general  facts  so  thoroughly 
that  I  can  end  the  whole  story  in  a  few  words." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  131 


IX. 


THE   LEGAL    STATEMENT. 

Monsieur  Alain  placed  the  papers,  3^ellowecl  by  time, 
in  Godefroicl's  hand ;  the  latter,  bidding  the  old  man 
good-night,  carried  them  off  to  his  room,  where  he 
read,  before  he  slept,  the  following  document :  — 

The  Indictment. 

Court  of  Criminal  and  Special  Justice  for  the  Department  of 

the  Orne. 

The  attorney-general  to  the  Imperial  Court  of  Caen, 
appointed  to  fulfil  his  functions  before  the  Special  Crim- 
inal Court  established  by  imperial  decree  under  date 
September,  1809,  and  sitting  at  Alenqon,  states  to  the 
Imperial  Court  the  following  facts  which  have  appeared 
under  the  above  procedure. 

The  plot  of  a  company  of  brigands,  evidently  long 
planned  with  consummate  care,  and  connected  with  a 
scheme  for  inciting  the  AVestern  departments  to  revolt, 
has  shown  itself  in  certain  attempts  against  the  private 
property  of  citizens,  but  more  especiall}'  in  an  armed 
attack  and  robbery  committed  on  the  mail-coach  which 


132  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

transported,  Ma}"  — ,  18 — ,  the  money  in  the  treasurj^ 
at  Caen  to  the  Treasury  of  France.  This  attack,  which 
recalls  the  deplorable  incidents  of  a  civil  war  now  hap- 
pily extinguished,  manifests  a  spirit  of  wickedness  which 
the  political  passions  of  the  present  da}^  do  not  justify. 

Let  us  pass  to  facts.  The  plot  is  complicated,  the 
details  are  numerous.  The  investigation  has  lasted  one 
year ;  but  the  evidence,  which  has  followed  the  crime 
step  by  step,  has  thrown  the  clearest  light  on  its  prepa- 
ration, execution,  and  results. 

The  conception  of  the  plot  was  formed  b}^  one 
Charles-Amedee-Louis-Joseph  Rifoel,  calling  himself 
Chevalier  du  Vissard,  born  at  the  Vissard,  district  of 
Saint-Mexme,  near  Ernee,  and  a  former  leader  of  the 
rebels. 

This  criminal,  whom  H.  M.  the  Emperor  and  King 
pardoned  at  the  time  of  the  general  pacification,  and 
who  has  profited  b}^  the  sovereign's  magnanimity  to 
commit  other  crimes,  has  already  paid  on  the  scafljold 
the  penalty  of  his  many  misdeeds ;  but  it  is  necessary 
to  recall  some  of  his  actions,  because  his  influence  was 
great  on  the  guilt}'  persons  now  before  the  court,  and 
he  is  closely  connected  with  the  facts  of  this  case. 

This  dangerous  agitator,  concealed,  according  to  the 
usual  custom  of  the  rebels,  under  the  name  of  Pierrot, 
went  from  place  to  place  throughout  the  departments  of 
the  West  gathering  together  the  elements  of  rebellion  ; 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  133 

but  his  chief  resort  was  the  chateau  of  Saint-Savin,  the 
residence  of  a  Madame  Lechantre  and  her  daughter,  a 
Madame  Brj'ond,  situated  in  the  district  of  Saint-Savin, 
arrondissement  of  Mortagne.  Several  of  the  most  hor- 
rible events  of  the  rebellion  of  1799  are  connected  with 
this  strategic  point.  Here  a  bearer  of  despatches  was 
murdered,  his  carriage  pillaged  by  the  brigands  under 
command  of  a  woman,  assisted  by  the  notorious  Marche- 
a-Terre.  Brigandage  appeared  to  be  endemic  in  that 
locality. 

An  intimacy,  which  we  shall  not  attempt  to  charac- 
terize, existed  for  more  than  a  year  between  the  woman 
Bryond  and  the  said  Rifoel. 

It  was  in  this  district  that  an  interview  took  place,  in 
April,  1808,  between  Rifoel  and  a  certain  Boislaurier,  a 
leader  known  by  the  name  of  Auguste  in  the  baneful 
rebellions  of  the  West,  who  instigated  the  affair  now 
before  the  court. 

The  somewhat  obscure  point  of  the  relations  between 
these  two  leaders  is  cleared  up  b}"  the  testimony  of 
numerous  witnesses,  and  also  by  the  judgment  of  the 
court  which  condemned  Rifoel. 

From  that  time  Boislaurier  had  an  understanding 
with  Rifoel,  and  they  acted  in  concert. 

Thej'  communicated  to  each  other,  at  first  secretly, 
their  infamous  plans,  encouraged  b}"  the  absence  of  His 
Imperial  and  Royal  Majesty  with  the  armies  in  Spain. 


134  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Their  scheme  was  to  obtain  possession  of  the  money 
of  the  Treasury  as  the  fundamental  basis  of  future 
operations. 

Some  time  after  this,  one  named  Dubut,  of  Caen, 
sent  an  emissary  to  the  chateau  of  Saint-Savin  named 
Hiley  —  commonly  called  "  The  Laborer,"  long  known 
as  a  highwayman,  a  robber  of  diligences  —  to  give 
information  as  to  the  men  who  could  safely  be  relied 
upon. 

It  was  thus  by  means  of  Hile}^  that  the  plotters 
obtained,  from  the  beginning,  the  co-operation  of  one 
Herbomez,  otherwise  called  General  Hardi,  a  former 
rebel  of  the  same  stamp  as  Rifoel,  and  like  him  faith- 
less to  his  pledges  under  the  amnesty. 

Herbomez  and  Hiley  recruited  from  the  surrounding 
districts  seven  brigands  whose  names  are :  — 

1.  Jean  Cibot,  called  Pille-Miche,  one  of  the  boldest 
brigands  of  the  corps  formed  by  Montauran  in  the  3'ear 
VII.,  and  a  participator  in  the  attack  upon  the  courier 
of  Mortagne  and  his  murder. 

2.  Francois  Lisieux,  called  Grand-Fils,  refractory  of 
the  department  of  the  Mayenne. 

3.  Charles  Grenier,  called  Fleur-de- Genet,  deserter 
from  the  69th  brigade. 

4.  Gabriel  Bruce,  called  Gros-Jean,  one  of  the  most 
ferocious  Chouans  of  Fontaine's  division. 

5.  Jacques  Horeau,  called  Stuart,   ex-lieutenant   in 


Tlie  Brotherliood  of  Consolation.  135 

the  same  brigade,  one  of  the  confederates  of  Tinteniac, 
well-known  for  his  participation  in  the  expedition  to 
Quiberon. 

6.  Marie-Anne  Cabot,  called  Lajeunesse,  former 
huntsman  to  the  Sieur  Carol  of  AlenQon. 

7.  Louis  Minard,  refractor^'. 

These  confederates  were  lodged  in  three  diflferent 
districts,  in  the  houses  of  the  following  named  persons  : 
Binet,  Melin,  and  Laraviniere,  innkeepers  or  publicans, 
and  all  devoted  to  Kifoel. 

The  necessary  arms  were  supplied  by  one  Jean- 
Franqois  Leveille,  notary ;  an  incorrigible  assistant  of 
the  brigands,  and  their  go-between  with  certain  hidden 
leaders  ;  also  b}'^  one  Felix  Courceuil,  commonl}-  called 
Confesseur,  former  surgeon  of  the  rebel  armies  of  La 
Vendee ;  both  these  men  are  from  Alencon. 

Eleven  muskets  were  hidden  in  a  house  belonging  to 
the  Sieur  Bryond  in  the  faubourg  of  Alencon,  where 
they  were  placed  without  his  knowledge. 

When  the  Sieur  Bryond  left  his  wife  to  pursue  the 
fatal  course  she  had  chosen,  these  muskets,  mysterioush^ 
taken  from  the  said  house,  were  transported  by  the 
woman  Bryond  in  her  own  carriage  to  the  chateau  of 
Saint-Savin. 

It  was  then  that  the  acts  of  brio:andao;e  in  the 
department  of  the  Orne  and  the  adjacent  departments 
took  place,  —  acts  that  amazed  both  the  authorities  and 


136  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

the  inhabitants  of  those  regions,  which  had  long  been 
entirely  pacificated  ;  acts,  moreover,  which  proved  that 
these  odious  enemies  of  the  government  and  the  French 
Empire  were  in  the  secret  of  the  coalition  of  1809 
through  communication  with  the  royalist  part}'  in 
foreign  countries. 

The  notary  Leveille,  the  woman  Bryond,  Dubut  of 
Caen,  Herbomez  of  Mayenne,  Boislaurier  of  Mans,  and 
Rifoel,  were  therefore  the  heads  of  the  association, 
which  was  composed  of  certain  guilty  persons  already 
condemned  to  death  and  executed  with  Rifoel,  certain 
others  who  are  the  accused  persons  at  present  under 
trial,  and  a  number  more  who  have  escaped  just 
punishment  by  flight  or  by  the  silence  of  their 
accomplices. 

It  was  Dubut  who,  living  near  Caen,  notified  the 
notary  Leveille  when  the  government  money  contained 
in  the  local  tax-office  would  be  despatched  to  the 
Treasury. 

We  must  remark  here  that  after  the  time  of  the  re- 
moval of  the  muskets,  Leveille,  who  went  to  see  Bruce, 
Grenier,  and  Cibot  in  the  house  of  Mehn,  found  them 
hiding  the  muskets  in  a  shed  on  the  premises,  and  him- 
self assisted  in  the  operation. 

A  general  rendezvous  was  arranged  to  take  place 
at  Mortagne,  in  the  hotel  de  I'Ecu  de  France.  All  the 
accused  persons  were  present  under  various  disguises. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  137 

It  was  then  that  Leveille,  the  woman  Bryond,  Dubut, 
Herbomez,  Boislaurier  and  Hiley  (the  ablest  of  the 
secondary  accomplices,  as  Cibot  was  the  boldest) 
obtained  the  co-operation  of  one  Vauthier,  called 
Vieux-Chene,  a  former  servant  of  the  famous  Longuy, 
and  now  hostler  of  the  hotel.  Vauthier  agreed  to 
notify  the  woman  Bryond  of  the  arrival  and  departure 
of  the  diligence  bearing  the  government  money,  which 
always  stopped  for  a  time  at  the  hotel. 

The  woman  Bryond  collected  the  scattered  brigands 
at  the  chateau  de  Saint-Savin,  a  few  miles  from  Mortagne, 
where  she  had  lived  with  her  mother  since  the  separation 
from  her  husband.  The  brigands,  with  Hiley  at  their 
head,  stayed  at  the  chateau  for  several  days.  The 
woman  Bryond,  assisted  by  her  maid  Godard,  prepared 
with  her  own  hands  the  food  of  these  men.  She  had 
already  filled  a  loft  with  hay,  and  there  the  provisions 
were  taken  to  them.  While  awaiting  the  arrival  of  the 
government  money  these  brigands  made  nightl}^  sorties 
from  Saint-Savin,  and  the  whole  region  was  alarmed  by 
their  depredations.  There  is  no  doubt  that  the  outrages 
committed  at  la  Sartiniere,  at  Vona}',  and  at  the  chateau 
of  Saint-Seny,  were  committed  by  this  band,  whose  bold- 
ness equals  their  criminalit}',  though  the\'  were  able  to 
so  terrifj'  their  victims  that  the  latter  have  kept  silence, 
and  the  authorities  have  been  unable  to  obtain  any 
testimony  from  them. 


138  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

While  thus  putting  under  contribution  those  persons 
in  the  neighborhood  who  had  purchased  lands  of  the 
National  domain,  these  brigands  carefull}'  explored  the 
forest  of  Chesnay  which  they  selected  as  the  theatre 
of  their  crime. 

Not  far  from  this  forest  is  the  village  of  Louvigney. 
An  inn  is  kept  there  by  the  brothers  Chaussard,  formerly 
game-keepers  on  the  Troisville  estate,  which  inn  was 
made  the  final  rendezvous  of  the  brigands.  These 
brothers  knew  beforehand  the  part  they  were  to  pla}^  in 
the  affair.  Courceuil  and  Boislaurier  had  long  made 
overtures  to  them  to  revive  their  hatred  against  the 
government  of  our  august  Emperor,  telling  them  that 
among  the  guests  who  would  be  sent  to  them  would  be 
certain  men  of  their  acquaintance,  the  dreaded  Hiley 
and  the  not  less  dreaded  Cibot. 

Accordingl}',  on  the  6th,  the  seven  bandits,  under 
Hiley,  arrived  at  the  inn  of  the  brothers  Chaussard,  and 
there  they  spent  two  days.  On  the  8th  Hilej^  led  off 
his  men,  saying  the}'  were  going  to  a  place  about  nine 
miles  distant,  and  asking  the  brothers  to  send  provisions 
for  them  to  a  certain  fork  in  the  road  not  far  distant 
from  the  village.  Hiley  himself  returned  and  slept  at 
the  inn. 

Two  persons  on  horseback,  who  were  undoubtedly 
Rifoel  and  the  woman  Bryond  (for  it  is  stated  that  this 
woman   accompanied  Rifoel   on  these   expeditions   on 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  139 

horseback  and  dressed  as  a  man),  arrived  during  the 
evening  and  conversed  with  Hiley. 

The  next  day  Hiley  wrote  a  letter  to  the  notary 
Leveille,  which  one  of  the  Chaussard  brothers  took  to 
the  latter,  bringing  back  his  answer. 

Two  hours  later  Rifoel  and  the  woman  Bryond 
returned  and  had  an  interview  with  Hiley. 

It  was  then  found  necessary  to  obtain  an  axe  to 
open,  as  we  shall  see,  the  cases  containing  the  money. 
The  notary  went  with  the  woman  Bryond  to  Saint-Savin, 
where  they  searched  in  vain  for  an  axe.  The  notary 
returned  alone ;  half  way  back  he  met  Hiley,  to  whom 
he  stated  that  they  could  not  obtain  an  axe. 

Hiley  returned  to  the  inn,  where  he  ordered  supper 
for  ten  persons  ;  seven  of  them  being  the  brigands,  who 
had  now  returned,  full}^  armed.  Hiley  made  them  stack 
their  arms  in  the  military  manner.  They  then  sat 
down  to  table  and  supped  in  haste.  Hiley  ordered 
provisions  prepared  to  take  away  with  him.  Then  he 
took  the  elder  Chaussard  aside  and  asked  him  for  an 
axe.  The  innkeeper  who,  if  we  believe  him,  was  sur- 
prised, refused  to  give  one.  Courceuil  and  Boislaurier 
arrived  ;  the  night  wore  on  ;  the  three  men  walked  the 
floor  of  their  room  discussing  the  plot.  Courceuil, 
called  "  Confesseur,"  the  most  wily  of  the  party, 
obtained  an  axe ;  and  about  two  in  the  morning  they 
all  went  away  by  different  paths. 


140  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Every  moment  was  of  value  ;  the  execution  of  the 
crime  was  fixed  for  that  night.  Hile}^,  Courceuil,  and 
Boislaurier  led  and  placed  their  men.  Hiley  hid  in 
ambush  with  Minard,  Cabot,  and  Bruce  at  the  right  of 
the  Chesnay  forest ;  Boislaurier,  Grenier,  and  Horeau 
took  the  centre ;  Courceuil,  Herbomez,  and  Lisieux 
occupied  the  ravine  to  the  left  of  the  wood.  All  these 
positions  are  indicated  on  the  ground-plan  drawn  by 
the  engineer  of  the  government  survey- office,  which  is 
here  subjoined. 

The  diligence,  which  had  left  Mortagne  about  one  in 
the  morning,  was  driven  by  one  Rousseau,  whose  con- 
duct proved  so  suspicious  that  his  arrest  was  judged 
necessary.  The  vehicle,  driven  slowl}",  would  arrive 
about  three  o'clock  at  the  forest  of  Chesna3^ 

A  single  gendarme  accompanied  the  diligence,  which 
would  stop  for  breakfast  at  Donner}^  Three  passengers 
only  were  making  the  trip,  and  were  now  walking  up 
the  hill  with  the  gendarme. 

The  driver,  who  had  driven  very  slowly  to  the  bridge 
of  Chesnay  at  the  entrance  of  the  wood,  now  hastened 
his  horses  with  a  vigor  and  eagerness  remarked  by 
the  passengers,  and  turned  into  a  cross-road,  called  the 
road  of  Senze}'.  The  carriage  was  thus  out  of  sight ; 
and  the  gendarme  with  the  three  3'Oung  men  were 
hurrying  to  overtake  it  when  they  heard  a  shout : 
"Halt!"  and  four  shots  were  fired  at  them. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  141 

The  gendarme,  who  was  not  hit,  drew  his  sabre  and 
rushed  in  the  direction  of  the  vehicle.  He  was  stopped 
by  four  armed  men,  who  fired  at  him ;  his  eagerness 
saved  him,  for  he  ran  towards  one  of  the  three  pass- 
engers to  tell  him  to  make  for  Chesnay  and  ring  the 
tocsin.  But  two  brigands  followed  him,  and  one  of 
them,  taking  aim,  sent  a  ball  though  his  left  shoulder, 
which  broke  his  arm,  and  he  fell  helpless. 

The  shouts  and  firing  were  heard  in  Donnery.  A 
corporal  stationed  there  and  one  gendarme  ran  toward 
the  sounds.  The  firing  of  a  squad  of  men  took  them 
to  the  opposite  side  of  the  wood  to  that  where  the 
pillage  was  taking  place.  The  noise  of  the  firing  pre- 
vented the  corporal  from  hearing  the  cries  of  the 
wounded  gendarme ;  but  he  did  distinguish  a  sound 
which  proved  to  be  that  of  an  axe  breaking  and  chop- 
ping into  cases.  He  ran  towards  the  sound.  Meeting 
four  armed  bandits,  he  called  out  to  them,  "  Surrender, 
villains  ! " 

They  replied:  "Stay  where  you  are,  or  you  are  a 
dead  man  !  "  The  corporal  sprang  forward  ;  two  shots 
were  fired  and  one  struck  him  ;  a  ball  went  through  his 
left  leg  and  into  the  flank  of  his  horse.  The  brave 
man,  bathed  in  blood,  was  forced  to  give  up  the 
unequal  fight ;  he  shouted  "  Help  !  the  brigands  are  at 
Chesnay  !  "  but  all  in  vain. 

The  robbers,  masters  of  the  ground  thanks  to  their 


142  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

numbers,  ransacked  the  coach.  They  had  gagged  and 
bound  the  driver  by  way  of  deception.  The  cases  were 
opened,  the  bags  of  money  thrown  out ;  the  horses 
were  unharnessed  and  the  silver  and  gold  loaded  on 
their  backs.  Three  thousand  francs  in  copper  were 
rejected ;  but  a  sum  in  other  coin  of  one  hundred  and 
three  thousand  francs  was  safely  carried  off  on  the 
four  horses. 

The  brigands  took  the  road  to  the  hamlet  of  Menne- 
ville,  which  is  close  to  Saint-Savin.  They  stopped  with 
their  plunder  at  an  isolated  house  belonging  to  the 
Chaussard  brothers,  where  the  Chaussards'  uncle,  one 
Bourget,  lived,  who  was  knowing  to  the  whole  plot 
from  its  inception.  This  old  man,  aided  by  his  wife, 
welcomed  the  brigands,  charged  them  to  make  no  noise, 
unloaded  the  bags  of  money,  and  gave  the  men  some- 
thing to  drink.  The  wife  performed  the  part  of  sen- 
tinel. The  old  man  then  took  the  horses  through  the 
wood,  returned  them  to  the  driver,  unbound  the  latter, 
and  also  the  3'oung  men,  who  had  been  garotted. 
After  resting  for  a  time,  Courceuil,  Hilej^  and  Bois- 
laurier  paid  their  men  a  paltry  sum  for  their  trouble, 
and  the  whole  band  departed,  leaving  the  plunder  in 
charge  of  Bourget. 

When  they  reached  a  lonely  place  called  Champ- 
Landry,  these  criminals,  obeying  the  impulse  which 
leads  all  malefactors  into  the  blunders  and  miscalcu- 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  143 

lations  of  crime,  threw  their  guns  into  a  wheat-field. 
This  action,  done  b}^  all  of  them,  is  a  proof  of  their  mu- 
tual understanding.  Struck  with  terror  at  the  boldness 
of  their  act,  and  even  b}'  its  success,  they  dispersed. 

The  robbery  now  having  been  committed,  with  the 
additional  features  of  assault  and  assassination,  other 
facts  and  other  actors  appear,  all  connected  with  the 
robbery  itself  and  with  the  disposition  of  the  plunder. 

Rifoel,  concealed  in  Paris,  whence  he  pulled  every 
wire  of  the  plot,  transmits  to  Leveille  an  order  to  send 
him  instantly  fifty  thousand  francs. 

Courceuil,  knowing  to  all  the  facts,  sends  Hiley  to 
tell  Leveille  of  the  success  of  the  attempt,  and  say  that 
he  will  meet  him  at  Mortagne.     Leveille  goes  there. 

Vauthier,  on  whose  fidelity  they  think  they  can  rely, 
agrees  to  go  to  Bourget,  the  uncle  of  the  Chaussards, 
in  whose  care  the  money  was  left,  and  ask  for  the  booty. 
The  old  man  tells  Vauthier  that  he  must  go  to  his 
nephews,  who  have  taken  large  sums  to  the  woman 
Br3^ond.  But  he  orders  him  to  wait  outside  in  the  road, 
and  brings  him  a  bag  containing  the  small  sum  of 
twelve  hundred  francs,  which  Vauthier  delivers  to  the 
woman  Lechantre  for  her  daughter. 

At  Leveille's  request,  Vauthier  returns  to  Bourget, 
who  this  time  sends  for  his  nephews.  The  elder  Chaus- 
sard  takes  Vauthier  to  the  wood,  shows  him  a  tree,  and 
there  the}'  find  a  bag  of  one  thousand  francs  buried  in 


144  The  Brotherhood  of  Coyisolation. 

the  earth.  Leveille,  Hile}',  and  Vauthier  make  other 
trips,  obtaining  onh"  trifling  sums  compared  with  the 
large  sum  known  to  have  been  captured. 

The  woman  Lechantre  receives  these  sums  at  Mor- 
tagne ;  and,  on  receipt  of  a  letter  from  her  daughter, 
removes  them  to  Saint-Savin,  where  the  woman  Brj'ond 
now  returns. 

This  is  not  the  moment  to  examine  as  to  whether  the 
woman  Lechantre  had  anv  anterior  knowledo:e  of  the 
plot. 

It  suffices  to  note  here  that  this  woman  left  Mortagne 
to  go  to  Saint-Savin  the  evening  before  the  crime  ;  that 
after  the  crime  she  met  her  daughter  on  the  high-road, 
and  the}"  both  returned  to  Mortagne  ;  that  on  the  fol- 
lowing day  Leveille,  informed  by  Hiley  of  the  success 
of  the  plot,  goes  from  Alengon  to  Mortagne,  and  there 
visits  the  two  women ;  later  he  persuades  them  to  de- 
posit the  sums  obtained  with  such  dilBcult}"  from  the 
Chaussards  and  Bourget  in  a  house  in  Alen^on,  of  which 
we  shall  speak  presently,  —  that  of  the  Sieur  Pannier, 
merchant. 

The  woman  Lechantre  writes  to  the  bailiff  at  Saint- 
Savin  to  come  and  drive  her  and  her  daughter  by  the 
cross-roads  towards  Alenqon. 

The  funds  now  in  their  possession  amount  to  twentj^ 
thousand  francs ;  these  the  girl  Godard  puts  into  the 
carriage  at  night. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  145 

The  notary  Leveille  had  given  exact  instructions. 
The  two  women  reach  Alenqon  and  stop  at  the  house 
of  a  confederate,  one  Louis  Chargegrain,  in  the  Littray 
district.  In  spite  of  all  the  precautions  of  the  notary-, 
who  came  there  to  meet  the  women,  witnesses  were  at 
hand  who  saw  the  portmanteaux  and  bags  containing 
the  money  taken  from  the  carriole. 

At  the  moment  when  Courceuil  and  Hiley,  disguised 
as  women,  were  consulting  in  the  square  at  Alencon 
with  the  Sieur  Pannier  (treasurer  of  the  rebels  since 
1794,  and  devoted  to  Rifoel)  as  to  the  best  means  of 
conveying  to  Rifoel  the  sum  he  asked  for,  the  woman 
Lechantre  became  alarmed  on  hearing  at  the  inn  where 
she  stopped  of  the  suspicions  and  arrests  alread}'  made. 
She  fled  during  the  night,  taking  her  daughter  with  her 
through  the  byways  and  cross-roads  to  Saint-Savin,  in 
order  to  take  refuge,  if  necessar}',  in  certain  hiding- 
places  prepared  at  the  chateau  de  Saint-Savin.  The 
same  fears  assailed  the  other  guilt}^  persons.  Cour- 
ceuil, Boislaurier,  and  his  relation  Dubut,  clandestine!}^ 
changed  two  thousand  francs  in  silver  money  for  gold, 
and  fled  to  Brittany  and  England. 

On  arriving  at  Saint-Savin,  the  women  Lechantre  and 
Bryond  heard  of  the  arrest  of  Bourget,  that  of  the  driver 
of  the  diligence,  and  that  of  the  two  refractories. 

The  magistrates  and  the  gendarmerie  struck  such 
sure  blows  that  it  was  thought  advisable  to  place  the 

10 


146  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation* 

woman  Brj'ond  be3'0iid  the  reach  of  justice  ;  for  she 
appears  to  have  been  an  object  of  great  devotion  on  the 
part  of  these  criminals,  who  were  captivated  by  her. 
She  left  Saint-Savin,  and  was  hidden  at  first  in  Alen- 
con,  where  her  followers  deliberated,  and  finally  placed 
her  in  the  cellar  of  Pannier's  house. 

Here  new  incidents  develop  themselves. 

After  the  arrest  of  Bourget  and  his  wife,  the  Chaus- 
sards  refuse  to  give  up  any  more  of  the  mone}',  de- 
claring themselves  betrayed.  This  unexpected  refusal 
was  given  at  a  moment  when  an  urgent  want  of  money 
was  felt  among  the  accomplices,  if  only  for  the  pur- 
poses of  escape.  Rifoel  was  always  clamorous  for 
money.  Hiley,  Cibot,  and  Leveille  began  to  suspect 
the  Chaussards. 

Here  comes  in  a  new  incident,  which  calls  for  the 
rigor  of  the  law. 

Two  gendarmes,  detailed  to  discover  the  woman 
Bryond,  succeeded  in  tracking  her  to  Pannier's.  There 
a  discussion  is  held ;  and  these  men,  unworthy  of  the 
trust  reposed  in  them,  instead  of  arresting  the  woman 
Bryond,  succumb  to  her  seductions.  These  unworthy 
soldiers,  named  Ratel  and  Mallet,  showed  this  woman 
the  utmost  interest  and  offered  to  take  her  to  the 
Chaussards  and  force  them  to  make  restitution. 

The  woman  Bryond  starts  on  horseback,  disguised  as 
a    man,  accompained    bj'   Ratel,  Mallet,    and    the    girl 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  147 

Godard.  She  makes  the  journe}-  b}*  night.  She  has  a 
conference  alone  with  one  of  the  brothers  Chaiissard, 
an  excited  conference.  She  is  armed  with  a  pistol,  and 
threatens  to  blow  out  the  brains  of  her  accomplice  if 
he  refuses  the  money.  Then  he  goes  with  her  into  the 
forest,  and  they  return  with  a  heavy  bag  of  coin.  In 
the  bag  are  copper  coins  and  twelve-sous  silver  pieces 
to  the  amount  of  fifteen  hundred  francs. 

When  the  woman  Brj'ond  returns  to  Alengon  the 
accomplices  propose  to  go  in  a  body  to  the  Chaussards' 
house  and  torture  them  until  the}'  deliver  up  the  whole 
sum. 

When  Pannier  hears  of  this  failure  he  is  furious.  He 
threatens.  The  woman  Bryond,  though  threatening 
him  in  return  with  Rifoel's  wrath,  is  forced  to  fl}'. 

These  facts  rest  on  the  confession  of  Ratel. 

Mallet,  pitying  the  woman  Bryond's  position,  offers 
her  an  asylum.  Then  Mallet  and  Eatel,  accompanied 
by  Hiley  and  Cibot,  go  at  night  to  the  brothers 
Chaussard ;  this  time  they  find  these  brothers  have 
left  the  place  and  have  taken  the  rest  of  the  money 
with  them. 

This  was  the  last  effort  of  the  accomplices  to  recover 
the  proceeds  of  the  robbery. 

It  now  becomes  necessar}'  to  show  the  exact  part 
taken  b}-  each  of  the  actors  in  this  crime. 

Dubut,  Boislaurier,  Herbomez,  Courceuil,  and  Hiley 


148  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

were  the  ringleaders.  Some  deliberated  and  planned, 
others  acted. 

Boislaurier,  Dubut,  and  Conreeuil,  all  three  fugitives 
from  justice  and  outlawed,  are  addicted  to  rebellion, 
fomenters  of  trouble,  implacable  enemies  of  Napoleon 
the  Great,  his  victories,  his  dynast}^,  and  his  govern- 
ment, haters  of  our  new  laws  and  of  the  constitution 
of  the  Empire. 

Herbomez  and  Hile}'  audaciously  executed  that  which 
the  three  former  planned. 

The  guilt  of  the  seven  instruments  of  the  crime, 
namely,  Cibot,  Lisieux,  Grenier,  Bruce,  Horeau,  Cabot, 
and  Minard,  is  evident ;  it  appears  from  the  confessions 
of  those  of  them  who  are  now  in  the  hands  of  justice ; 
Lisieux  died  during  the  investigation,  and  Bruce  has 
fled  the  country. 

The  conduct  of  Rousseau,  who  drove  the  coach,  marks 
him  as  an  accomplice.  His  slow  method  of  driving,  his 
haste  at  the  entrance  of  the  wood,  his  persistent 
declaration  that  his  head  was  covered,  whereas  the 
passengers  testify  that  the  leader  of  the  brigands  told 
him  to  take  the  handkerchief  off  his  head  and  recognize 
them  ;  all  these  facts  are  strong  presumptive  evidence 
of  collusion. 

As  for  the  woman  Br3'ond  and  the  notary  Leveille, 
could  any  co-operation  be  more  connected,  more  con- 
tinuous than  theirs?     They  repeatedly  furnished  means 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  149 

for  the  crime ;  they  were  privy  to  it,  and  they  abetted 
it.  Leveille  travelled  constantl}'.  The  woman  Bryond 
invented  scheme  after  scheme ;  she  risked  all,  even 
her  life,  to  recover  the  plunder.  She  lent  her  house, 
her  carriage  ;  her  hand  is  seen  in  the  plot  from  the 
beginning  ;  she  did  not  dissuade  the  chief  leader  of  all, 
Rifoel,  since  executed,  although  through  her  guilty 
influence  upon  him  she  might  have  done  so.  She  made 
her  waiting- woman,  the  girl  Godard,  an  accomplice. 
As  for  Leveille,  he  took  an  active  part  in  the  actual 
perpetration  of  the  crime  b}'  seeking  the  axe  the 
brigands  asked  for. 

The  woman  Bourget,  Vauthier,  the  Chaussards, 
Pannier,  the  woman  Lechantre,  Mallet  and  Ratel,  all 
participated  in  the  crime  in  their  several  degrees,  as 
did  the  innkeepers  Melin,  Binet,  Laraviniere,  and 
Chargegrain. 

Bourget  has  died  during  the  investigation,  after  mak- 
ing a  confession  which  removes  all  doubt  as  to  the  part 
played  by  Vauthier  and  the  woman  Bryond ;  if  he 
attempted  to  extenuate  that  of  his  wife  and  his  nephew 
Chaussard,  his  motives  are  easy  to  understand. 

The  Chaussards  knowingly  fed  and  lodged  the 
brigands,  they  saw  them  armed,  they  witnessed  all 
their  arrangements  and  knew  the  object  of  them  ;  and 
lastly,  they  received  the  plunder,  which  they  hid,  and 
as  it  appears,  stole  from  their  accomplices. 


150  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Pannier,  the  former  treasurer  of  the  rebels,  concealed 
the  woman  Brj'ond  in  his  house  ;  he  is  one  of  the  most 
dangerous  accomplices  of  this  crime,  which  he  knew 
from  its  inception.  In  him  certain  mysterious  relations 
which  are  still  obscure  took  their  rise  ;  the  authorities 
now  have  these  matters  under  investigation.  Pannier 
was  the  right  hand  of  Rifoel,  the  depositary  of  the 
secrets  of  the  counter-revolutionary  party  of  the  West ; 
he  regretted  that  Rifoel  introduced  women  into  the  plot 
and  confided  in  them ;  it  was  he  who  received  the 
stolen  money  from  the  woman  Bryond  and  conveyed  it 
to  Rifoel. 

As  for  the  conduct  of  the  two  gendarmes  Ratel 
and  Mallet,  it  deserves  the  severest  penaltj^  of  the  law. 
Thej^  betrayed  their  dut}'.  One  of  them,  foreseeing  his 
fate,  committed  suicide,  but  not  until  he  had  made  im- 
portant revelations.  The  other,  Mallet,  denies  nothing  ; 
his  tacit  admissions  preclude  all  doubt,  especially  as  to 
the  guilt  of  the  woman  Br3^ond. 

The  woman  Lechantre,  in  spite  of  her  constant 
denials,  was  priv}^  to  all.  The  hypocrisy  of  this 
woman,  who  attempts  to  shelter  her  assumed  inno- 
cence under  the  mask  of  a  false  piety,  has  certain 
antecedents  which  prove  her  decision  of  character  and 
her  intrepidity  in  extreme  cases.  She  alleges  that  she 
was  misled  by  her  daughter,  and  believed  that  the 
plundered  money  belonged  to  the  Sieur  Bryond,  —  a 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  151 

common  excuse  !  If  the  Sieur  Bjyond  had  possessed 
any  property,  he  would  not  have  left  the  department  on 
account  of  his  debts.  The  woman  Lechantre  claims 
that  she  did  not  suspect  a  shameful  theft,  because  she 
saw  the  proceedings  approved  by  her  all}',  Boislau- 
rier.  But  how  does  she  explain  the  presence  of  Rifoel 
(already  executed)  at  Saint-Savin ;  the  journeys  to 
and  fro ;  the  relations  of  that  young  man  with  her 
daughter ;  the  stay  of  the  brigands  at  Saint-Savm, 
where  the}'  were  served  by  her  daughter  and  the  girl 
Godard  ?  She  alleges  sleep  ;  declares  it  to  be  her  prac- 
tice to  go  to  bed  at  seven  in  the  evening ;  and  has  no 
answer  to  make  when  the  magistrate  points  out  to  her 
that  if  she  rises,  as  she  says  she  does,  at  dawn,  she 
must  have  seen  some  signs  of  the  plot,  of  the  sojourn 
of  so  many  persons,  and  of  the  nocturnal  goings  and 
comings  of  her  daughter.  To  this  she  replies  that  she 
was  occupied  in  praj-er.  This  woman  is  a  mass  of 
hypocrisy.  Lastly,  her  journey  on  the  da}'  of  the  crime, 
the  care  she  takes  to  carr}^  her  daughter  to  Mortagne, 
her  conduct  about  the  money,  her  precipitate  flight 
when  all  is  discovered,  the  pains  she  is  at  to  conceal 
herself,  even  the  circumstances  of  her  arrest,  all  go  to 
prove  a  long-existing  complicity.  She  has  not  acted 
like  a  mother  who  desires  to  save  her  daughter  and 
withdraw  her  from  danger,  but  like  a  trembling  accom- 
plice.    And  her  complicity  is  not  that  of  a  misguided 


152  The  Brotherliood  of  Coiisolation. 

tenderness ;  it  is  the  fruit  of  party  spirit,  the  inspira- 
tion of  a  well-known  hatred  against  the  government  of 
His  Imperial  and  Rojal  Majest}^  Misguided  maternal 
tenderness,  if  that  could  be  fairly  alleged  in  her  defence, 
would  not,  however,  excuse  it ;  and  we  must  not  forget 
that  consentment,  long-standing  and  premeditated,  is 
the  surest  sign  of  guilt. 

Thus  all  the  elements  of  the  crime  and  the  persons 
committing  it  are  fully  brought  to  light. 

We  see  the  madness  of  faction  combining  with  pil- 
lage and  greed ;  we  see  assassination  advised  b}'  party 
spirit,  under  whose  aegis  these  criminals  attempt  to  jus- 
tify themselves  for  the  basest  crimes.  The  leaders  give 
the  signal  for  the  pillage  of  the  public  mone}',  which 
money  is  to  be  used  for  their  ulterior  crimes ;  vile  sti- 
pendiaries do  this  work  for  a  paltry  price,  not  recoiling 
from  murder;  then  the  fomenters  of  rebellion,  not  less 
guilty  because  their  own  hands  have  neither  robbed  nor 
murdered,  divide  the  boot}'  and  dispose  of  it.  What 
community  can  tolerate  such  outrages  ?  The  law  itself 
is  scarcely  rigorous  enough  to  duly  punish  them. 

It  is  upon  the  above  facts  that  this  Court  of  Criminal 
and  Special  Justice  is  called  upon  to  decide  whether 
the  prisoners  Herbomez,  Hiley,  Cibot,  Grenier,  Horeau, 
Cabot,  Minard,  Melin,  Binet,  Laraviniere,  Rousseau, 
the  woman  Bryond,  Leveille,  the  woman  Bourget, 
Vauthier,    Chaussard   the   elder,    Pannier,    the   widow 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  153 

Lechantre,  Mallet,  all  herein  named  and  described, 
and  arraigned  before  this  court ;  also  Boislaurier, 
Dubut,  Courceuil,  Bruce,  the  3'ounger  Chaussard, 
Chargegrain,  and  the  girl  Godard,  —  these  latter  being 
absent  and  fugitives  from  justice,  —  are  or  are  not 
guilty  of  the  crimes  charged  in  this  indictment. 
Done  at  Caen,  this  1st  of  December,  180-. 

(Signed)         Bakon  Bourlac, 

A  ttorney-  General. 


154  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 


X. 


PRAY    FOR    THOSE    WHO    DESPITEFULLY   USE    YOU    AND 
PERSECUTE    YOU. 

This  legal  paper,  much  shorter  and  more  imperative 
than  such  indictments  are  in  these  days,  when  they  are 
far  more  detailed  and  more  precise,  especially  as  to  the 
antecedent  life  of  accused  persons,  affected  Godefroid 
deepl}'.  The  drj'ness  of  the  statement  in  which  the 
official  pen  narrated  in  red  ink  the  principal  details  of 
the  affair  stirred  his  imagination.  Concise,  abbrevi- 
ated narratives  are  to  some  minds  texts  into  the  hidden 
meaning  of  which  they  love  to  burrow. 

In  the  middle  of  the  night,  aided  b}^  the  silence,  b}' 
the  darkness,  b}^  the  terrible  relation  intimated  by  the 
worthy  Alain  between  the  facts  of  that  document  and 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  Godefroid  applied  all  the 
forces  of  his  intellect  to  decipher  the  dreadful  theme. 

Evident^  the  name  Lechantre  stood  for  la  Chanterie ; 
in  all  probability  the  aristocracy  of  the  name  was  in- 
tentionall}^  thus  concealed  during  the  Revolution  and 
under  the  Empire. 

Godefroid  saw,  in  imagination,  the  landscape  and 
the  scenes  where  the  drama  had   taken  place.      The 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  155 

forms  and  faces  of  the  accomplices  passed  before  his 
e^es.  He  pictured  to  himself  not  "  one  Rifoel "  but  a 
Chevalier  du  Vissard,  a  young  man  something  like  the 
Fergus  of  Walter  Scott,  a  French  Jacobite.  He 
developed  the  romance  of  an  ardent  young  girl 
grossly  deceived  by  an  infamous  husband  (a  style  of 
romance  then  much  the  fashion) ;  loving  the  young 
and  gallant  leader  of  a  rebellion  against  the  Empire ; 
giving  herself,  bod}"  and  soul,  like  another  Diana 
Vernon,  to  the  conspiracy,  and  then,  once  launched  on 
that  fatal  incline,  unable  to  stop  herself.  Had  she 
rolled  to  the  scaffold? 

The  young  man  saw  in  his  own  mind  a  whole  world, 
and  he  peopled  it.  He  wandered  in  the  shade  of  those 
Norman  groves ;  he  saw  the  Breton  hero  and  Madame 
Bryond  among  the  gorse  and  shrubber}- ;  he  inhabited 
the  old  chateau  of  Saint-Savin  ;  he  shared  in  the  diverse 
acts  of  all  those  many  personages,  picturing  to  himself 
the  notary,  the  merchant,  and  those  bold  Chouans.  His 
mind  conceived  the  state  of  that  wild  country-  where 
lingered  still  the  memor}'  of  the  Comtes  de  Bauvan,  de 
Longuy,  the  exploits  of  Marche-a-Terre,  the  massacre 
at  La  Vivetiere,  the  death  of  the  Marquis  de  INIon- 
tauran  —  of  whose  prowess  Madame  de  la  Chanterie 
had  told  him. 

This  sort  of  vision  of  things,  of  men,  of  places  was 
rapid.     AYhen  he   remembered  that  this   drama   must 


156  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

relate  to  the  dignified,  noble,  deeply  religious  old 
woman  whose  virtue  was  acting  upon  him  so  power- 
fully as  to  be  upon  the  point  of  metamorphosing  him, 
Godefroid  was  seized  with  a  sort  of  teiTor,  and  turned 
hastily  to  the  second  document  which  Monsieur  Alain 
had  given  him.     This  was  entitled :  — 

"  Summary  on  behalf  of  Madame  Henriette  Bryond  des  Tours- 
Minieres,  ne'e  Lechantre  de  la  Chanterie." 

"  No  longer  any  doubt !  "  murmured  Godefroid. 

^'We  are  condemned  and  guilty;  but  if  ever  the 
Sovereign  had  reason  to  exercise  his  right  of  clemenc}' 
it  is  surely  in  a  case  like  this. 

"Here  is  a  3'oung  woman,  about  to  become  a  mother, 
and  condemned  to  death. 

"  From  a  prison  cell,  with  the  scaffold  before  her,  this 
woman  will  tell  the  truth. 

"  The  trial  before  the  Criminal  Court  of  Alencon  had, 
as  in  all  cases  where  there  are  man}'  accused  persons 
in  a  conspirac}'  inspired  by  party-spirit,  certain  portions 
which  were  seriously  obscure. 

"  The  Chancellor  of  His  Imperial  and  Royal  Majesty 
knows  now  the  truth  about  the  mysterious  personage 
named  Le  Marchand,  whose  presence  in  the  department 
of  the  Orne  was  not  denied  b}'  the  government  during 
the   trial,    but   whom   the   prosecution   did   not   think 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  157 

proper  to  call  as  witness,  and  whom  the  defence  had 
neither  the  power  nor  the  opportunity  to  find. 

"That  personage  is,  as  the  prosecuting  officer,  the 
police  of  Paris,  and  the  Chancellor  of  His  Imperial  and 
Royal  Majest}'  well  know,  the  Sieur  Bernard-Polydor 
Bryond  des  Tours-Minieres,  the  correspondent,  since 
1794,  of  the  Comte  de  Lille, — known  elsewhere  as 
the  Baron  des  Tours-Minieres,  and  on  records  of  the 
Parisian  police  under  the  name  of  Contenson. 

"  He  is  notorious.  His  youth  and  name  were  degraded 
by  vices  so  imperative,  an  immorality  so  profound, 
conduct  so  criminal,  that  his  infamous  life  must  have 
ended  on  the  scaff'old  if  he  had  not  possessed  the 
abilit}'  to  pla}'  a  double  part,  as  indicated  b}^  his  names. 
Hereafter,  as  his  passions  rule  him  more  and  more,  he 
will  end  b}^  falling  to  the  depths  of  infamy  in  spite  of 
his  incontestable  ability  and  a  remarkable  mind. 

"  When  the  Comte  de  Lille  became  aware  of  this  man's 
character  he  no  longer  permitted  him  to  take  part  in 
the  ro3'alist  councils  or  to  handle  the  mone}'  sent  to 
France  ;  he  thus  lost  the  resources  derived  from  these 
masters,  whose  service  had  been  profitable  to  him. 

*'It  was  then  that  he  returned  to  his  countrj-  home, 
crippled  with  debt. 

"  His  traitorous  connection  with  the  intrigues  of 
England  and  the  Comte  de  Lille,  won  him  the  con- 
fidence of  the  old  families  attached  to  the  cause  now 


158  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

vanquished  by  the  genius  of  our  immortal  Emperor.  He 
there  met  one  of  the  former  leaders  of  the  rebellion, 
with  whom  at  the  time  of  the  expedition  to  Quiberon, 
and  later,  at  the  time  of  the  last  uprising  of  the 
Chouans,  he  had  held  certain  relations  as  an  envoy 
from  England.  He  encouraged  the  schemes  of  this 
young  agitator,  Rifoel,  who  has  since  paid  with  his  life 
on  the  scaffold  for  his  plots  against  the  State.  Through 
him  Bryond  was  able  to  penetrate  once  more  into  the 
secrets  of  that  party  which  has  misunderstood  both  the 
glory  of  H.  M.  the  Emperor  Napoleon  I.  and  the  true 
interests  of  the  nation  united  in  his  august  person. 

"At  the  age  of  thirt3'-five,  this  man,  then  known 
under  his  true  name  of  des  Tours-Minieres,  ajffecting  a 
sincere  piet}",  professing  the  utmost  devotion  to  the 
interests  of  the  Comte  de  Lille  and  a  reverence  for 
the  memory  of  the  insurgents  who  lost  their  lives 
at  the  West,  disguising  with  great  ability  the  secrets 
of  his  exhausted  3'outh,  and  powerfully  protected 
by  the  silence  of  creditors,  and  by  the  spirit  of  caste 
which  exists  among  all  countrj^  ci-devants,  — this  man,^ 
truly  a  whited  sepulchre,  was  introduced,  as  possessing 
every  claim  for  consideration,  to  Madame  Lechantre, 
who  was  supposed  to  be  the  possessor  of  a  large 
fortune. 

"  All   parties  conspired  to  promote   a   marriage  be- 
tween the  young  Henriette,  only  daughter  of  Madame 


I  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  159 

Lechantre,  and  this  protege  of  the  ci-devants.  Priests, 
nobles,  creditors,  each  with  a  different  interest,  loyal 
in  some,  selfish  in  others,  blind  for  the  most  part,  all 
united  in  furthering  the  anion  of  Bernard  Bryond  des 
Tours-Minieres  ^ith  Henriette  Lechantre. 

"The  good  sense  of  the  notary"  who  had  charge  of 
Madame  Lechantre's  affairs,  and  perhaps  his  distrust, 
were  the  actual  cause  of  the  disaster  of  this  3'oung  girl. 
The  Sieur  Chesnel,  notary-  at  Alencon,  put  the  estate  of 
Saint-Savin,  the  sole  property  of  the  bride,  under  the 
dower  system,  reserving  the  right  of  habitation  and  a 
modest  income  to  the  mother. 

"The  creditors,  who  supposed,  from  Madame  Le- 
chantre's orderl}^  and  frugal  wa}'  of  living,  that  she  had 
capital  laid  by,  were  deceived  in  their  expectations, 
and  the}''  then  began  suits  which  revealed  the  precarious 
financial  condition  of  Bryond. 

"  Serious  difl^erences  now  arose  between  the  newly 
married  pair,  and  the  young  wife  had  occasion  to  know 
the  depraved  habits,  the  political  and  religious  atheism 
and  —  shall  I  say  the  word  ?  —  the  infamy  of  the  man 
to  whom  her  life  had  been  so  fatally  united.  Brvond, 
forced  to  let  his  wife  into  the  secret  of  the  ro3'alist  plots, 
gave  a  home  in  his  house  to  their  chief  agent,  Rifoel  du 
Vissard. 

"  The  character  of  Rifoel,  adventurous,  brave,  gen- 
erous, exercised  a  charm  on  all  who  came  in  contact 


160  The  Brothei^Jiood  of  Consolation. 

with  him,  as  was  abundantly'  proved  during  his  trials 
before  three  successive  criminal  courts. 

"  The  irresistible  influence,  the  absolute  empire  he 
acquired  over  the  mind  of  a  3'oung  woman  who  saw  her- 
self suddenl}'  cast  into  the  ab3'ss  of  a  fatal  marriage,  is 
but  too  visible  in  this  catastrophe  which  now  brings  her 
a  suppliant  to  the  foot  of  the  Throne.  But  that  which 
the  Chancellor  of  His  Imperial  and  Ro3'al  Majesty  can 
easil}'  verif}^  is  the  infamous  encouragement  given  by 
Bryond  to  this  intimac}'.  Far  from  fulfilling  his  dut}^ 
as  guide  and  counsellor  to  a  child  whose  poor  deceived 
mother  had  trusted  her  to  him,  he  took  pleasure  in 
drawing  closer  still  the  bonds  that  united  the  3'Oung 
Henriette  to  the  rebel  leader. 

"The  plan  of  this  odious  being,  who  takes  pride  in 
despising  all  things  and  considers  nothing  but  the 
satisfaction  of  his  passions,  admitting  none  of  the 
restraints  imposed  by  civil  or  religious  moralit}',  was 
as  follows  :  — 

"  We  must  first  remark,  however,  that  such  plotting 
was  familiar  to  a  man  who,  ever  since  1794  has  played 
a  double  part,  who  for  eight  years  deceived  the  Comte 
de  Lille  and  his  adherents,  and  probably  deceived  at  the 
same  time  the  police  of  the  Republic  and  the  Empire : 
such  men  belong  onlj'  to  those  who  pa}^  them  most. 

"  Bryond  pushed  Rifoel  to  crime ;  he  instigated  the 
attacks  of  armed  men  upon  the  mail-coaches  bearing 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  161 

the  monej's  of  the  government,  and  the  levying  of  a 
heavy  tribute  from  the  purchasers  of  the  National 
domain  ;  a  tax  he  enforced  by  means  of  tortures  in- 
vented by  him  which  carried  terror  through  five  depart- 
ments. He  then  demanded  that  a  sum  of  three  hundred 
thousand  francs  derived  from  these  plunderings  be  paid 
to  him  for  the  liquidation  of  his  debts. 

When  he  met  with  resistance  on  the  part  of  his  wife 
and  Rifoel,  and  saw  the  contempt  his  proposal  inspired 
in  upright  minds  who  were  acting  only  from  party  spirit, 
he  determined  to  bring  them  both  under  the  rigor  of  the 
law  on  the  next  occasion  of  their  committing  a  crime. 

He  disappeared,  and  returned  to  Paris,  taking  with 
him  all  information  as  to  the  then  condition  of  the 
departments  of  the  West. 

The  brothers  Chaussard  and  Vauthier  were,  as  the 
chancellor  knows,  Brj'ond's  correspondents. 

As  soon  as  the  attack  was  made  on  the  diligence  from 

Caen,  Br3'ond  returned  secretly  and  in  disguise,  under 

the  name  of  Le  Marchand.     He  put  himself  into  secret 

communication  with  the  prefect  and  the    magistrates. 

What  was  the  result?     Never  was  any  conspiracy,  in 

which  a  great  number  of  persons  took  part,  so  rapidly 

discovered  and  dealt  with.     Within  six  da3'S  after  the 

committal  of  the  crime  all  the  guilty  persons  were  followed 

and  watched  with  an  intellis-ence  which  showed  the  most 

accurate  knowledge  of  the  plans,  and  of  the  individuals 

11 


162  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation* 

concerned  in  them.  The  immediate  arrest,  trial,  and 
execution  of  Rifoel  and  his  accomplices  are  the  proof 
of  this.  We  repeat,  the  chancellor  knows  even  more 
than  we  do  on  this  subject. 

If  ever  a  condemned  person  had  a  right  to  appeal  to 
the  Sovereign's  mercj'  it  is  Henriette  Lechantre. 

Though  led  astray  by  love,  by  ideas  of  rebellion 
which  she  sucked  in  with  the  milk  that  fed  her,  she  is, 
most  certainly,  inexcusable  in  the  ej'es  of  the  law  ;  but 
in  the  e3"es  of  the  most  magnanimous  of  emperors, 
will  not  her  misfortunes,  the  infamous  betrayal  of  her 
husband,  and  a  rash  enthusiasm  plead  for  her? 

The  greatest  of  all  captains,  the  immortal  genius 
which  pardoned  the  Prince  of  Hatzfeldt  and  is  able  to 
divine  the  reasons  of  the  heart,  will  he  not  admit  the 
fatal  power  of  love,  invincible  in  youth,  which  extenu- 
ates this  crime,  great  as  it  was? 

Twenty-two  heads  have  fallen  under  the  blade  of 
the  law ;  only  one  of  the  guilty  persons  is  now  left,  and 
she  a  young  woman,  a  minor,  not  twent}'  j'ears  of  age. 
Will  not  the  Emperor  Napoleon  the  Great  grant  her 
life,  and  give  her  time  in  which  to  repent?  Is  not  that 
to  share  the  part  of  God  ? 

For  Henriette  Lechantre,  wife  of  Br3'ond  des  Tour- 

Minieres,  — 

Her  defender,  Bordin, 

Barrister  of  the  Lower  Court  of  the  Department 

of  the  Seine. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  163 

This  dreadful  drama  disturbed  the  little  sleep  that 
Godefroid  took.  He  dreamed  of  that  penalty  of  death 
such  as  the  ph3'sician  Guillotin  has  made  it  with  a 
philanthropic  object.  Through  the  hot  vapors  of  a 
nightmare  he  saw  a  young  woman,  beautiful,  enthu- 
siastic, enduring  the  last  preparations,  drawn  in  that 
fatal  tumbril,  mounting  the  scaffold,  and  crying  out, 
''Vive  le  roi !  " 

Eager  to  know  the  whole,  Godefroid  rose  at  dawn, 
dressed,  and  paced  his  room ;  then  stood  mechanically 
at  his  window  gazing  at  the  sky,  while  his  thoughts 
reconstructed  this  drama  in  many  volumes.  Ever, 
on  that  darksome  background  of  Chouans,  peasants, 
country  gentlemen,  rebel  leaders,  spies,  and  officers  of 
justice,  he  saw  the  vivid  figures  of  the  mother  and  the 
daughter  detach  themselves;  the  daughter  misleading 
the  mother;  the  daughter  victim  of  a  monster;  victim, 
too,  of  her  passion  for  one  of  those  bold  men  whom, 
later,  we  have  glorified  as  heroes,  and  to  whom  even 
Godefroid's  imagination  lent  a  likeness  to  the  Charettes 
and  the  Georges  Cadoudals,  —  those  giants  of  the 
struggle  between  the  Republic  and  the  Monarchy. 

As  soon  as  Godefroid  heard  the  goodman  Alain  stir- 
ring in  the  room  above  him,  he  went  there  ;  but  he  had 
no  sooner  opened  the  door  than  he  closed  it  and  went 
back  to  his  own  apartment.  The  old  man,  kneeling  by 
his  chair,  was  saying  his  morning  pra^'er.    The  sight  of 


164  The  Brotherhood  of  Coyisolatlon. 

that  whitened  head,  bowed  in  an  attitude  of  humble 
reverence,  reminded  Godefroid  of  his  own  forgotten 
duties,  and  he  pra3ed  ferventl}'. 

"I  expected  you,"  said  the  kind  old  man,  when 
Godefroid  entered  his  room  some  fifteen  minutes  later. 
"  I  got  up  earlier  than  usual,  for  I  felt  sure  you  would 
be  impatient." 

"Madame  Henriette?"  asked  Godefroid,  with  visible 
anxiet}'. 

"  Was  Madame's  daughter  !  "  replied  Monsieur  Alain. 
^'  Madame's  name  is  Lechantre  de  la  Chanterie.  Under 
the  Empire  none  of  the  nobiliary  titles  were  allowed, 
nor  an}^  of  the  names  added  to  the  patron3'mic  or  orig- 
inal names.  Therefore,  the  Baronne  des  Tours-Minieres 
was  called  Madame  Brj^ond.  The  Marquis  d'Esgrignon 
took  his  name  of  Carol  (citizen  Carol) ;  later  he  was 
called  the  Sieur  Carol.  The  Troisvilles  became  the 
Sieurs  Guibelin." 

"But  what  happened?  Did  the  Emperor  pardon 
her?" 

"Alas,  no  !  "  replied  Alain.  "  The  unfortunate  little 
woman,  not  twenty-one  3'ears  old,  perished  on  the  scaf- 
fold. After  reading  Bordin's  appeal,  the  Emperor 
answered  very  much  in  these  terms  :  '  Whj'  be  so  bitter 
against  the  spv?  A  sp}'  is  no  longer  a  man  ;  he  ought 
not  to  have  feelings  ;  he  is  a  wheel  of  the  machinery ; 
Br3'ond  did  his  dut3'.     If  instruments  of  that  kind  were 


The  Brothey^hood  of  Consolation.  1G5 

not  what  they  are,  —  steel  bars,  —  and  intelligent  only 
in  the  service  of  the  power  employing  them,  govern- 
ment would  not  be  possible.  The  sentences  of  criminal 
courts  must  be  carried  out,  or  the  judges  would  cease 
to  have  confidence  in  themselves  or  in  me.  Besides, 
the  women  of  the  West  must  be  taught  not  to  meddle 
in  plots.  It  is  precisely  in  the  case  of  a  woman  that 
justice  should  not  be  interfered  with.  There  is  no 
excuse  possible  for  an  attack  on  power?'  This  was 
the  substance  of  what  the  Emperor  said,  as  Bordin 
repeated  it  to  me.  Learning  a  little  later  that  France 
and  Russia  were  about  to  measure  swords  against  each 
other,  and  that  the  Emperor  was  to  go  two  thousand 
miles  from  Paris  to  attack  a  vast  and  desert  countr}^, 
Bordin  understood  the  secret  reason  of  the  Emperor's 
harshness.  To  insure  tranquillit}*  at  the  West,  now 
full  of  refractories,  Napoleon  believed  it  necessary  to 
inspire  terror.     Bordin  could  do  no  more." 

*'  But  Madame  de  la  Chanterie?"  said  Godefroid. 

"Madame  de  la  Chanterie  was  sentenced  to  twent}'' 
j'ears'  imprisonment,"  replied  Alain.  "As  she  was 
already  transferred  to  Bicetre,  near  Rouen,  to  undergo 
her  punishment,  nothing  was  attempted  on  her  behalf 
until  every  effort  had  been  made  to  save  Henriette,  who 
had  grown  dearer  than  ever  to  her  mother  during  this 
time  of  anxiet3\  Indeed,  if  it  had  not  been  for  Bordin's 
assurance  that  he  could  obtain  Henriette's  pardon,  it  is 


166  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

doubtful  if  Madame  could  have  survived  the  shock  of 
the  sentence.  When  the  appeal  failed,  they  deceived 
the  poor  mother.  She  saw  her  daughter  once  after  the 
execution  of  the  other  prisoners,  not  knowing  that 
Madame  Bryond's  respite  was  due  to  a  false  declara- 
tion of  pregnane}^,  made  to  gain  time  for  the  appeal." 

"  Ah  !  I  understand  it  all  now/'  exclaimed  Godefroid. 

"  No,  my  dear  child,  there  are  things  that  no  one  can 
imagine.  Madame  thought  her  daughter  living  for  a 
long  time." 

"How  was  that?  " 

"  When  Madame  des  Tours-Minieres  learned  from 
Bordin  that  her  appeal  was  rejected  and  that  nothing 
could  save  her,  that  sublime  little  woman  had  the  cour- 
age to  write  twent}^  letters,  dating  them  month  b}-  month 
after  the  time  of  her  execution,  so  as  to  make  her  poor 
mother  in  her  prison  believe  she  was  alive.  In  those 
letters  she  told  of  a  gradual  illness  which  would  end  in 
death.  The}^  covered  a  period  of  two  years.  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie  was  therefore  prepared  for  the  news  of 
her  daughter's  death,  but  she  thought  it  a  natural  one. 
She  did  not  know  until  1814  that  Henriette  had  died  on 
the  scaffold.  For  two  jears  Madame  was  herded 
among  the  most  depraved  of  her  sex,  but  thanks  to  the 
urgency  of  the  Champignelles  and  the  Beauseants  she 
was,  after  the  second  year,  placed  in  a  cell  b^^  herself, 
where  she  lived  like  a  cloistered  nun." 


Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  167 

"  And  the  others?"  asked  Godefroid. 

"  The  notary  Le'veille,  Herbomez,  Hiley,  Cibot, 
Grenier,  Horeau,  Cabot,  Minard,  and  Mallet  were  con- 
demned to  death,  and  executed  the  same  day.  Pannier, 
condemned  to  hard  labor  for  twenty  years,  was  branded 
and  sent  to  the  galleys.  The  Chaussards  and  Vauthier 
received  the  same  sentence,  but  were  pardoned  by  the 
Emperor.  Melin,  Laraviniere  and  Binet,  were  condemned 
to  five  years'  imprisonment.  The  woman  Bourget  to 
twenty  years'  imprisonment.  Chargegrain  and  Rousseau 
were  acquitted.  Those  who  escaped  were  all  condemned 
to  death,  except  the  girl  Godard,  who  was  no  other,  as 
you  have  probably  guessed,  than  our  poor  Manon  —  " 

"  Manon  !  "  exclaimed  Godefroid. 

"  Oh !  you  don't  know  Manon  yet,"  replied  the  kind 
old  Alain.  "  That  devoted  creature,  condemned  to 
twent}'  years'  imprisonment,  gave  herself  up  that  she 
mio;ht  take  care  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  and  wait 
upon  her.  Our  dear  vicar  was  the  priest  at  Mortagne 
who  gave  the  last  sacraments  to  the  Baronne  des  Tours- 
Minieres ;  he  had  the  courage  to  go  with  her  to  the 
scaffold,  and  to  him  she  gave  her  farewell  kiss.  That 
courageous,  noble  priest  had  also  accompanied  the 
Chevalier  du  Vissard.  Our  dear  Abbe  de  Vdze  has 
therefore  known  all  the  secrets  of  those  days." 

''  I  see  why  his  hair  is  so  white,"  said  Godefroid. 

^'  Alas  !  ves,"  said  Alain.     "  He  received  from  Ame- 


168  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

dee  du  Vissard  a  miniature  of  Madame  des  Tonrs- 
Minieres,  the  only  portrait  of  her  that  exists ;  there- 
fore, the  abbe  became  almost  sacred  in  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie's  e3'es  when  she  re-entered  social  existence." 

"  When  did  that  happen?"  asked  Godefroid. 

"  Why,  at  the  restoration  of  Louis  XVIII.,  in  1814. 
The  Marquis  du  Vissard,  eldest  brother  of  the  Chevalier, 
was  created  peer  of  France  and  loaded  with  honors  by 
the  king.  The  brother  of  Monsieur  d'Herbomez  was 
made  a  count  and  receiver-general.  The  poor  banker 
Pannier  died  of  grief  at  the  galley's.  Boislaurier  died 
without  children,  a  lieutenant-general  and  governor 
of  a  royal  chateau.  Messieurs  de  Champignelles,  de 
Beauseant,  the  Due  de  Verneuil,  and  the  Keeper  of  the 
Seals  presented  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  to  the  king. 
*  You  have  suffered  greatly  for  me,  madame  la  baronne  ; 
you  have  every  right  to  m}-  favor  and  gratitude,'  he 
said  to  her.  '  Sire,' she  replied,  '3'our  Majesty  has  so 
man}'  sorrows  to  console  that  I  do  not  wish  that  mine, 
which  is  inconsolable,  should  be  a  burden  upon  3'ou. 
To  live  forgotten,  to  mourn  my  daughter,  and  do  some 
good,  that  is  m}^  life.  If  anything  could  soften  m}' 
grief,  it  is  the  kindness  of  my  king,  it  is  the  pleasure 
of  seeing  that  Providence  has  not  allowed  our  long 
devotion  to  be  useless.'  " 

"  And  what  did  Louis  XVIII.  do?"  asked  Godefroid. 

*'  He  restored  two  hundred  thousand  francs  in  monej' 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  169 

to  Madame  de  la  Chaiiterie,  for  the  estate  of  Saint- 
Savin  had  been  sold  to  pay  the  costs  of  the  trial.  In 
the  decree  of  pardon  issued  for  Madame  la  baroune  and 
her  servant  the  king  expressed  regret  for  the  suffer- 
ing borne  in  his  cause,  adding  that  '  the  zeal  of  his 
servants  had  gone  too  far  in  its  methods  of  execution.' 
But — and  this  is  a  horrible  thing;  it  will  serve  to 
show  you  a  curious  trait  in  the  character  of  that  mon- 
arch —  he  emplo3'ed  Bryond  in  his  detective  police 
throughout  his  reign." 

''  Oh,  kings  !  kings  !  "  cried  Godefroid  ;  "  and  is  the 
wretch  still  living?" 

"  No  ;  the  wretch,  as  you  justly  call  him,  who  concealed 
his  real  name  under  that  of  Contenson,  died  about  the 
close  of  the  year  1829  or  the  beginning  of  1830.  In 
trying  to  arrest  a  criminal  who  escaped  over  a  roof,  he 
fell  into  the  street.  Louis  XVIII.  shared  Napoleon's 
ideas  as  to  spies  and  police.  Madame  de  la  Chanterie 
is  a  saint ;  she  prays  constantly  for  the  soul  of  that  man 
and  has  two  masses  said  yearly  for  him.  As  I  have 
already  told  3'ou,  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  knew  nothing 
of  the  dangers  her  daughter  was  incurring  until  the  day 
when  the  money  was  carried  to  Alen^on  ;  nevertheless 
she  was  unable  to  establish  her  innocence,  although 
defended  b}^  one  of  the  greatest  lawyers  of  tliat  time. 
The  president,  du  Rouceret,  and  the  vice-president, 
Blondet,  of  the  court  of  Alen^on  did  their  best  to  save 


170  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

our  poor  lad}'.  But  the  influence  of  the  councillor  of 
the  Imperial  Court  who  presided  at  her  trial  before  the 
Criminal  and  Special  Court,  the  famous  Mergi,  and  that 
of  Bourlac  the  attorney-general  was  such  over  the  other 
judges  that  they  obtained  her  condemnation.  Both 
Bourlac  and  Mergi  showed  extraordinar}'  bitterness 
against  mother  and  daughter  ;  they  called  the  Baronne 
des  Tours-Minieres  '  the  woman  Brj'ond,'  and  Madame 
'the  woman  Lechantre.'  The  names  of  accused  persons 
in  those  days  were  all  brought  to  one  republican  level, 
and  were  sometimes  unrecognizable.  The  trial  had 
several  very  extraordinary  features,  which  I  cannot  now 
recall ;  one  piece  of  audacit}'  remains  in  my  memor}- 
which  will  serve  to  show  you  what  sort  of  men  those 
Chouans  were.  The  crowd  which  assembled  to  hear  the 
trial  was  immense ;  it  even  filled  the  corridors  and  the 
square  before  the  court-house.  One  morning,  after 
the  opening  of  the  court  room  and  before  the  arrival 
of  the  judges,  Pille-Miche,  a  famous  Chouan,  sprang 
over  the  balustrade  into  the  middle  of  the  crowd,  elbow- 
ing right  and  left, '  charging  like  a  wild  boar/  as  Bordin 
told  me,  through  the  frightened  people.  The  guards 
and  the  gendarmes  dashed  after  him  and  caught  him 
just  as  he  reached  the  square ;  after  that  the  guards 
were  doubled.  A  picket  of  gendarmerie  was  stationed 
in  the  square,  for  they  feared  there  were  Chouans  on 
the  ground  read}'  to  rescue  the  prisoners.     As  it  was, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  171 

three  persons  were  crushed  to  death  on  this  occasion. 
It  was  afterwards  discovered  that  Contenson  (neither 
my  friend  Bordin  nor  I  could  ever  bring  ourselves  to 
call  him  the  Baron  des  Tours-Minieres,  nor  Bryond 
which  is  the  name  of  an  old  famil}'),  —  it  was,  I  say, 
discovered  that  this  wretch  Contenson  had  obtained 
sixty  thousand  francs  of  the  stolen  money  from  the 
Chaussards ;  he  gave  ten  thousand  to  the  3'ounger 
Chaussard,  whom  he  took  with  him  into  the  detective 
police  and  inoculated  with  his  vices  ;  his  other  accom- 
plices got  nothing  from  him.  Madame  de  la  Chanterie 
invested  the  mone}^  restored  to  her  by  the  king  in 
the  public  Funds,  and  bought  this  house  to  please 
her  uncle,  Monsieur  de  Boisfrelon,  who  gave  her  the 
mone}^  for  the  purchase,  and  died  in  the  rooms  3'ou 
now  occupy.  This  tranquil  neighborhood  is  near  the 
archbishop's  palace,  where  our  dear  abbe  has  duties  with 
the  cardinal.  That  was  one  of  the  chief  reasons  whj' 
Madame  agreed  to  her  uncle's  wish.  Here,  in  this 
cloistral  life,  the  fearful  misfortunes  which  overwhelmed 
her  for  twent3^-six  years  have  been  brought  to  a  close. 
Now  you  can  understand  the  majesty,  the  grandeur  of 
this  victim  —  august,  I  venture  to  call  her." 

"  Yes,"  said  Godefroid,  "  the  imprint  of  all  the  blows 
she  has  received  remains  and  gives  her  something,  I 
can  scarcel}'  describe  it,  that  is  grand  and  majestic/' 

*'  Ever}'  wound,  every  fresh  blow,  has  increased  her 


172  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

patience,  her  resignation,"  continued  Alain;  "but  if 
you  knew  her  as  we  know  her  3'ou  would  see  how  keen 
is  her  sensibilit}^  how  active  the  inexhaustible  tender- 
ness of  her  heart,  and  3^ou  would  almost  stand  in  awe 
of  the  tears  she  had  shed,  and  the  fervent  prayers  she 
makes  to  God.  Ah  !  it  was  necessary  to  have  known, 
as  she  did,  a  brief  period  of  happiness  to  bear  up  as 
she  has  done  under  such  misfortunes.  Hers  is  a  tender 
hearty  a  gentle  soul  in  a  steel  body  hardened  by  priva- 
tions, b}'  toil,  b}^  austerities." 

"  Her  life  explains  why  hermits  live  so  long,"  said 
Godefroid. 

"There  are  days  when  I  ask  myself  what  is  the 
meaning  of  a  life  like  hers?  Can  it  be  that  God 
reserves  such  trials,  such  cruel  tests,  for  those  of  his 
creatures  who  are  to  sit  on  the  morrow  of  their  death 
at  his  right  hand?"  said  the  good  Alain,  quite  uncon- 
scious that  he  was  artlessly  expressing  the  whole 
doctrine  of  Swedenborg  on  the  angels. 

"  And  you  tell  me,"  said  Godefroid,  "  that  in  prison 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  was  put  with  —  " 

"Madame  was  sublime  is  her  prison,'*  said  Alain. 
"For  three  whole  years  she  realized  the  story  of  the 
Vicar  of  Wakefield,  and  was  able  to  convert  man}-  of  the 
worst  women  about  her.  During  her  imprisonment  she 
observed  the  habits  and  customs  of  these  women,  and 
was  seized  with  that  great  pity  for  the  sorrows  of  the 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  173 

people  which  has  since  filled  her  soul  and  made  her  the 
angel  of  Parisian  charitj'.  In  that  dreadful  Bicetre  of 
Rouen,  she  conceived  the  plan  to  the  realization  of 
which  we  are  now  devoted.  It  was,  she  has  often  told 
us,  a  delightful  dream,  an  angelic  inspiration  in  the 
midst  of  hell ;  though  she  never  thought  she  should 
realize  it.  When,  in  1819,  peace  and  quietude  seemed 
reall}'  to  return  to  Paris,  her  dream  came  back  to  her. 
Madame  la  Duchesse  d'Angouleme,  afterwards  the 
danphine,  the  Duchesse  de  Berrj^,  the  archbishop,  later 
the  chancellor,  and  several  pious  persons  contributed 
liberally  the  first  necessary  sums.  These  funds  have 
been  increased  by  the  addition  of  our  own  available 
propert}^  from  which  we  take  only  enough  for  our 
actual  needs." 

Tears  came  into  Godefroid's  e3'es. 

*'  We  are  the  ministers  of  a  Christian  idea  ;  we  belong 
bod}'  and  soul  to  its  work,  the  spirit  of  which,  the 
founder  of  which,  is  theBaronne  de  la  Chanterie,  whom 
you  hear  us  so  respectfiillj^  call  '  Madame.'  " 

"Ah!  let  me  belong  to  you!"  cried  Godefroid, 
stretching  out  his  hands  to  the  kind  old  man. 

"  Now  you  understand  wh}'  there  are  some  subjects  of 
conversation  which  are  never  mentioned  here,  nor  even 
alluded  to.  You  can  now  see  the  obligations  of  delicac}' 
that  all  who  live  in  this  house  contract  towards  one  who 
seems  to  us  a  saint.    You  comprehend  —  do  you  not?  — 


174  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

the  influence  of  a  woman  made  sacred  by  such  sorrows, 
who  knows  so  many  things,  to  whom  anguish  has  said 
its  utmost  word  ;  who  from  each  adversity  has  drawn 
instruction,  in  whom  all  virtues  have  the  double 
strength  of  cruel  trial  and  of  constant  practice ;  whose 
soul  is  spotless  and  without  reproach,  whose  mother- 
hood knew  onl}'  grief,  whose  married  love  knew  only 
bitterness ;  on  whom  life  smiled  for  a  brief  time  only, 
but  for  whom  heaven  reserves  a  palm,  the  reward  of 
resignation  and  of  loving-kindness  under  sorrow.  Ah  ! 
does  she  not  even  triumph  over  Job  in  never  murmur- 
ing? Can  you  wonder  that  her  words  are  so  powerful, 
her  old  age  so  30ung,  her  soul  so  communicative,  her 
glance  so  convincing?  She  has  obtained  extraordinary 
powers  in  dealing  with  sufferers,  for  she  has  suft'ered  all 
things." 

"  She  is  the  living  image  of  Charit}^ !  "  cried  Gode- 
froid,  fervently.     "  Can  I  ever  be  one  of  you?" 

''You  must  first  endure  the  tests,  and  above  all 
BELIEVE  !  "  said  the  old  man,  gentl3\  "  So  long  as  3'ou 
have  no  faith,  so  long  as  3^ou  have  not  absorbed  into 
vour  heart  and  mind  the  divine  meaning  of  Saint  Paul's 
epistle  upon  Charit3',  you  cannot  share  our  work." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  175 


SECOND   EPISODE. 
THE    INITIATE. 


XI. 


THE   POLICE    OF   THE    GOOD    GOD. 

Like  evil,  good  is  contagious.  Therefore  when 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  lodger  had  lived  in  that  old 
and  silent  house  for  some  months  after  the  worthy 
Alain's  last  confidence,  which  gave  him  the  deepest 
respect  for  the  religious  lives  of  those  among  whom  his 
was  cast,  he  experienced  that  well-being  of  the  soul 
which  comes  of  a  regulated  existence,  gentle  customs, 
and  harmony  of  nature  in  those  who  surround  us.  At 
the  end  of  four  months,  during  which  time  Godefroid 
heard  neither  a  loud  voice  nor  an  argument,  he  could 
not  remember  that  he  had  ever  been,  if  not  as  happy, 
at  least  as  tranquil  and  contented.  He  now  judged 
soundl}"  of  the  world,  seeing  it  from  afar.  At  last, 
the  desire  he  had  felt  for  months  to  be  a  sharer  in 
the  work  of  these  mysterious  persons  became  a  passion. 


176  Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Without  being  great  philosophers  we  can  all  under- 
stand the  force  which  passions  acquire  in  solitude. 

Thus  it  happened  that  one  da}'  —  a  da}'  made  solemn 
by  the  power  of  the  spirit  within  him  —  Godefroid 
again  went  up  to  see  the  good  old  Alain,  him  whom 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  called  her  "lamb,"  the 
member  of  the  community  who  seemed  to  Godefroid 
the  least  imposing,  the  most  approachable  member  of 
the  fraternity,  intending  to  obtain  from  him  some 
definite  light  on  the  conditions  of  the  sacred  work  to 
which  these  brothers  of  God  were  dedicated.  The 
allusions  made  to  a  period  of  trial  seemed  to  imply  an 
initiation,  which  he  was  now  desirous  of  receiving. 
His  curiosity  had  not  been  satisfied  by  what  the  vener- 
able old  man  had  already  told  him  as  to  the  causes 
which  led  to  the  work  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  ;  he 
wanted  to  know  more. 

For  the  third  time  Godefroid  entered  Monsieur 
Alain's  room,  just  as  the  old  man  was  beginning  his 
evening  reading  of  the  "Imitation  of  Jesus  Christ." 
This  time  the  kindly  soul  did  not  restrain  a  smile  when 
he  saw  the  young  man,  and  he  said  at  once,  without 
allowing  Godefroid  to  speak :  — 

"  Why  do  you  come  to  me,  my  dear  boy ;  why  not 
go  to  Madame?  I  am  the  most  ignorant,  the  most 
imperfect,  the  least  spiritual  of  our  number.  For  the 
last   three    days,"    he    added,    with    a    shrewd    little 


The  Brothe7'hood  of  Consolation.  Ill 

glance,  "  Madame  and  mj'  other  friends  have  read 
your  heart." 

"  What  have  the}'  read  there?"  asked  Godefroid. 

"  Ah  !  "  replied  the  goodraan,  without  evasion,  "  the}' 
see  in  you  a  rather  artless  desire  to  belong  to  our  little 
flock.  But  this  sentiment  is  not  as  yet  an  ardent 
vocation.  Yes,"  he  continued,  replying  to  a  gesture 
of  Godefroid's,  "you  have  more  curiosity  than  fervor. 
You  are  not  yet  so  detached  from  your  old  ideas 
that  you  do  not  look  forward  to  something  adventurous, 
romantic,  as  they  say,  in  the  incidents  of  our  life." 

Godefroid  could  not  keep  himself  from  blushing. 

' '  You  see  a  likeness  between  our  occupations  and 
those  of  the  caliphs  of  the  'Arabian  Nights  ;'  and  you 
are  thinking  about  the  satisfaction  you  will  have  in 
playing  the  part  of  the  good  genii  in  the  tales  of 
benevolence  you  are  inventing.  Ah,  my  dear  boy ! 
that  shame-faced  laugh  of  yours  proves  to  me  that  we 
were  quite  right  in  that  conjecture.  How  do  you  ex- 
pect to  conceal  any  feeling  from  persons  whose  business 
it  is  to  divine  the  most  hidden  motion  of  souls,  the 
tricks  of  poverty,  the  calculations  of  indigence, — honest 
spies,  the  police  of  the  good  God ;  old  judges,  whose 
code  contains  nothing  but  absolutions ;  doctors  of 
suffering,  whose  only  remedy  is  oftentimes  the  wise 
application  of  money?  But,  you  see,  my  child,  we 
don't  wish  to  quarrel  with  the  motives  which  bring  us 

12 


178  Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

a  neophyte,  provided  he  will  really  stay  and  become 
a  brother  of  the  order.  We  shall  judge  you  by  3'our 
work.  There  are  two  kinds  of  curiosit}',  —  that  of  good 
and  that  of  evil ;  just  at  this  moment  you  have  that  of 
good.  If  you  should  work  in  our  vineyard,  the  juice  of 
our  grapes  will  make  you  perpetually  thirsty  for  the 
divine  fruit.  The  initiation  is,  as  in  that  of  all  natu- 
ral knowledge,  easy  in  appearance,  difficult  in  reality. 
Benevolence  is  like  poesy ;  nothing  is  easier  than  to 
catch  the  appearance  of  it.  But  here,  as  in  Parnassus, 
nothing  contents  us  but  perfection.  To  become  one 
of  us,  you  must  acquire  a  great  knowledge  of  life. 
And  what  a  life,  —  good  God  !  Parisian  life,  which  de- 
fies the  sagacity  of  the  minister  of  police  and  all  his 
agents !  We  have  to  circumvent  the  perpetual  con- 
spiracy of  Evil,  master  it  in  all  its  forms,  while  it 
changes  so  often  as  to  seem  infinite.  Charity  in  Paris 
must  know  as  much  as  vice,  just  as  a  policeman  must 
know  all  the  tricks  of  thieves.  We  must  each  be  frank 
and  each  distrustful ;  we  must  have  quick  perception 
and  a  sure  and  rapid  judgment.  And  then,  my  child, 
we  are  old  and  getting  older ;  but  we  are  so  con- 
tent with  the  results  we  have  now  obtained,  that  we 
do  not  want  to  die  without  leaving  successors  in  the 
work.  If  you  persist  in  3'our  desire,  yon  will  be  our 
first  pupil,  and  all  the  dearer  to  us  on  that  account. 
There  is  no  risk  for  us,  because  God  brought  you  to 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  179 

us.  Yours  is  a  good  nature  soured ;  since  3'ou  have 
been  here  the  evil  leaven  has  weakened.  The  divine 
nature  of  Madame  has  acted  upon  yours.  Yesterday 
we  took  counsel  together ;  and  inasmuch  as  I  have 
}onr  confidence,  my  good  brothers  resolved  to  give 
me  to  you  as  guardian  and  teacher.  Does  that  please 
you  ?  " 

'^Ah!  my  kind  Monsieur  Alain,  your  eloquence 
awakens  —  " 

"No,  my  child,  it  is  not  I  who  speak  well;  it  is 
things  that  are  eloquent.  We  can  be  sure  of  being 
great,  even  sublime,  in  obejing  God,  in  imitating 
Jesus  Christ,  —  imitating  him,  I  mean,  as  much  as 
men  are  able  to  do  so,  aided  b}'  faith." 

"This  moment,  then,  decides  m}'  life!"  cried  Gode- 
froid.  "I  feel  within  me  the  fervor  of  a  neophyte; 
I  wish  to  spend  m}^  life  in  doing  good." 

"That  is  the  secret  of  remaining  in  God,"  replied 
Alain.  "  Have  you  studied  our  motto,  —  Transire 
benefaciendo  ?  Transire  means  to  go  beyond  this 
world,  leaving  benefits  on  our  way." 

"Yes,  I  have  understood  it;  I  have  put  the  motto 
of  the  order  before  m}'  bed." 

"That  is  well;  it  is  a  trifling  action,  but  it  counts 
for  much  in  my  eyes.  And  now  I  have  yoxxv  first  aflfair, 
your  first  duel  with  miserj^,  prepared  for  you  ;  I  '11  put 
your  foot  into  the  stirrup.    We  are  about  to  part.    Yes, 


180  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

I  myself  am  detached  from  the  convent,  to  live  for  a 
time  in  the  crater  of  a  volcano.  I  am  to  be  a  clerk  in 
a  great  manufactory,  where  the  workmen  are  infected 
with  communistic  doctrines,  and  dream  of  social  de- 
struction, the  abolishment  of  masters,  —  not  knowing 
that  that  would  be  the  death  of  industry,  of  com- 
merce, of  manufactures.  I  shall  stay  there  goodness 
knows  how  long,  —  perhaps  a  year,  —  keeping  the 
books  and  paying  the  wages.  This  will  give  me  an 
entrance  into  a  hundred  or  a  hundred  and  twenty 
homes  of  working-men,  misled,  no  doubt,  by  poverty, 
even  before  the  pamplilets  of  the  day  misled  them.  But 
you  and  I  can  see  each  other  on  Sundays  and  fete-days. 
We  shall  be  in  the  same  quarter ;  and  if  you  come  to 
the  church  of  Saint-Jacques  du  Haut-Pas,  you  will  find 
me  there  any  day  at  half-past  seven,  when  I  hear  mass. 
If  you  meet  me  elsewhere  don't  recognize  me,  unless 
you  see  me  rub  my  hands  like  a  man  who  is  pleased  at 
something.  That  is  one  of  our  signs.  We  have  a  lan- 
o-iiage  of  si2:ns,  like  the  deaf  and  dumb ;  3'ou  '11  soon 
find  out  the  absolute  necessit}^  of  it." 

Godefroid  made  a  gesture  which  the  goodman  Alain 
interpreted;  for  he  laughed,  and  immediately  went  on 
to  say :  — 

' '  Now  for  3'our  affair.  We  do  not  practise  either  the 
benevolence  or  the  philanthropy  that  you  know  about, 
which  are  really  divided  into  several  branches,  all  taken 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  181 

advantage  of  by  sharpers  in  charity  as  a  business.  We 
practise  charity  as  our  great  and  sublime  Saint  Paul 
defines  it;  for,  my  dear  lad,  we  think  that  charity,  and 
charity  alone,  which  is  Love,  can  heal  the  wounds  of  Paris. 
In  our  eyes,  miserj',  of  whatever  kind,  povert}',  suffering, 
misfortune,  grief,  evil,  no  matter  how  produced,  or  in 
what  social  class  thej'  show  tliemselves,  have  equal  rights. 
Whatever  his  opinions  or  beliefs,  an  unhappy  man  is, 
before  all  else,  an  unhappy  man ;  and  we  ought  not  to 
attempt  to  turn  his  face  to  our  holy  mother  Church 
until  we  have  saved  him  from  despair  or  hunger.  More- 
over, we  ought  to  convert  him  to  goodness  more  by 
example  and  by  gentleness  than  b}'  any  other  means ; 
and  we  believe  that  God  will  specially  help  us  in  this. 
All  constraint  is  bad.  Of  the  manifold  Parisian  mise- 
ries, the  most  difficult  to  discover,  and  the  bitterest,  is 
that  of  worthy  persons  of  the  middle  classes  who  have 
fallen  into  povert}' ;  for  they  make  concealment  a  point 
of  honor.  Those  sorrows,  my  dear  Godefroid,  are  to 
us  the  object  of  special  solicitude.  Such  persons  usu- 
ally have  intelligence  and  good  hearts.  They  return  to 
us,  sometimes  with  usur}',  the  sums  that  we  lend  them. 
Such  restitutions  recoup  us  in  the  long  run  for  the 
losses  we  occasionally  incur  through  impostors,  shift- 
less creatures,  or  those  whom  misfortunes  have  ren- 
dered stupid.  Through  such  persons  we  often  obtain 
valuable  help  in  our  investigations.     Our  work  has  now 


182  The   Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

become  so  vast,  its  details  are  so  multifarious,  that  we 
no  longer  suffice  of  ourselves  to  carry  it  on.  So,  for 
the  last  year  we  have  a  physician  of  our  own  in  every 
arroudissement  in  Paris.  Each  of  us  takes  general 
charge  of  four  arrondissements.  We  pay  each  ph3'si- 
cian  three  thousand  francs  a  year  to  take  care  of  our 
poor.  His  time  belongs  to  us  in  the  first  instance,  but 
we  do  not  prevent  him  from  attending  other  sick  per- 
sons if  he  can.  Would  you  believe  that  for  many 
months  we  were  unable  to  find  twelve  reall}'  trust- 
worthy, valuable  men,  in  spite  of  all  our  own  eff'orts 
and  those  of  our  friends?  We  could  not  employ  any 
but  men  of  absolute  discreetness,  pure  lives,  sound 
knowledge,  experience,  active  men,  and  lovers  of  doing 
good.  Now,  although  there  are  in  Paris  some  ten  thou- 
sand individuals,  more  or  less,  who  would  gladly  do  the 
work,  we  could  not  find  twelve  to  meet  our  needs  in  a 
whole  year." 

"  Our  Saviour  had  difficulty  in  gathering  his  apostles, 
and  even  then  a  traitor  and  an  unbeliever  got  among 
them,"  said  Godefroid. 

''However,  within  the  last  month  all  our  arron- 
dissements are  provided  with  a  Visitor  —  that  is  the 
name  we  give  to  our  physicians.  At  the  same  time 
the  business  is  increasing,  and  we  have  all  redoubled 
our  activity.  If  I  confide  to  you  these  secrets  of  our 
S3'stem,  it  is  that  you  must  know  tlie  physician,  that  is, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  183 

the  Visitor  of  the  arrondisseraent  to  which  we  are  about 
to  send  you  ;  from  him,  all  original  information  about 
our  cases  comes.  This  Visitor  is  named  Berton,  Doctor 
Berton  ;  he  lives  in  the  rue  d'Enfer.  And  now  here 
are  the  facts  :  Doctor  Berton  is  attending  a  lady  whose 
disease  puzzles  and  defies  science.  That,  of  course,  is 
not  our  concern,  but  that  of  the  Facult}'.  Our  business 
is  to  discover  the  condition  of  the  family  of  this  patient ; 
Doctor  Berton  suspects  that  their  poverty  is  frightful, 
and  concealed  with  a  pride  and  determination  which 
demand  our  utmost  care.  Until  now,  my  son,  I  should 
have  found  time  for  this  case,  but  the  work  I  am  now 
undertaking  obliges  me  to  find  a  helper  in  my  four 
arrondissements,  and  3'ou  shall  be  that  helper.  This 
family  lives  in  the  rue  Notre-Dame  des  Champs,  in  a 
house  at  the  corner  of  the  boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse. 
You  will  find  a  room  to  let  in  the  same  house,  where 
you  can  live  for  a  time  so  as  to  discover  the  truth  about 
these  persons.  Be  sordid  for  3'ourself,  but  as  for 
the  money  you  may  think  needed  for  this  case  have  no 
uneasiness.  I  will  remit  }'ou  such  sums  as  we  may 
judge  necessary  after  ourselves  considering  all  the  cir- 
cumstances. But  remember  that  you  must  study  the 
moral  qualities  of  these  unfortunates  :  their  hearts,  the 
honorableness  of  their  feelings  ;  those  are  our  guaran- 
tees. Miserly  we  may  be  for  ourselves,  and  generous 
to  those  who  suffer,  but  we  must  be  prudent  and  even 


184  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

calculating,  for  we  are  dealing  with  the  money  of  the 
poor.  So  then,  to-morrow  morning  3'ou  can  start ; 
think  over  the  power  we  put  in  3'our  hands :  the 
brothers  are  with  3'ou  in  heart." 

"Ah!"  cried  Godefroid,  "  3-ou  have  given  me  such 
a  pleasure  in  the  opportunity  of  doing  good  and  making 
myself  worthy-  to  belong  to  you  some  daj^,  that  I  shall 
not  sleep  to-night." 

"One  more  word,  my  child.  I  told  you  not  to 
recognize  me  without  the  signal ;  the  same  rule  applies 
to  the  other  gentlemen  and  to  Madame,  and  even  to 
the  people  you  see  about  this  house.  We  are  forced  to 
keep  up  an  absolute  incognito  in  all  we  do ;  this  is  so 
necessary  to  our  enterprises  that  we  have  made  a  rule 
about  it.  We  seek  to  be  ignored,  lost  in  this  great 
Paris.  Remember  also,  my  dear  Godefroid,  the  spirit 
of  our  order ;  which  is,  never  to  appear  as  benefac- 
tors, to  pla}'  an  obscure  part,  that  of  intermediaries. 
We  always  present  ourselves  as  the  agent  of  a  pious, 
saintty  person  ( in  fact,  we  are  working  for  God),  so 
that  none  of  those  we  deal  with  ma}'  feel  the  obligation 
of  gratitude  towards  an}^  of  us,  or  think  we  are  wealthy 
persons.  True,  sincere  humilit}',  not  the  false  humilit}' 
of  those  who  seek  thereby  to  be  set  in  the  light,  must 
inspire  you  and  rule  all  3'our  thoughts.  You  ma}^  indeed 
be  glad  when  you  succeed ;  but  so  long  as  3'Ou  feel 
within  30U  a  sentiment  of  vanit3'  or  of  pride,  3'OU  are 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  185 

not  worthy  to  do  the  work  of  the  order,  We  have 
known  two  perfect  men :  one,  who  was  one  of  our 
founders,  Judge  Popinot ;  the  other  is  revealed  by  his 
works ;  he  is  a  country  doctor  whose  name  is  written 
on  the  annals  of  his  canton.  That  man,  my  dear  Gode- 
froid,  is  one  of  the  greatest  men  of  our  time  ;  he 
brought  a  whole  region  out  of  wretchedness  into  pros- 
p.erit}',  out  of  irreligion  into  Christianity,  out  of  barbar- 
ism into  civilization.^  The  names  of  those  two  men 
are  graven  on  our  hearts  and  we  have  taken  them  as 
our  models.  We  should  be  happy  indeed  if  we  our- 
selves could  some  day  acquire  in  Paris  the  influence 
that  countr}'  doctor  had  in  his  canton.  But  here,  the 
sore  is  vast,  beyond  our  strength  at  present.  Ma}'' 
God  preserve  to  us  Madame,  may  he  send  us  some 
3^oung  helpers  like  you,  and  perhaps  we  may  yet  leave 
behind  us  an  institution  worth}'  of  his  divine  religion. 
And  now  good-b3'e  ;  3'our  initiation  begins  —  Ah  !  I 
chatter  like  a  professor  and  forget  the  essential  thing  ! 
Here  is  the  address  of  that  family,"  he  added,  giving 
Godefroid  a  piece  of  paper  ;  "  I  have  added  the  number 
of  Dr.  Berton's  house  in  the  rue  d'Enfer  ;  and  now,  go 
and  pray  to  God  to  help  j^ou." 

Godefroid  took  the  old   man's   hands   and  pressed 
them  tenderly,   wishing  him  good-night,  and  assuring 
him  he  would  not  neglect  a  single  point  of  his  advice. 
^    The  Countrv  Doctor.     Roberts  Bros.     Boston. 


186  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"  All  that  3'ou  have  said  to  me/'  he  added,  '*  is 
graven  in  m}'  memory  forever." 

The  old  man  smiled,  expressing  no  doubts  ;  then  he 
rose,  to  kneel  in  his  accustomed  place.  Godefroid  re- 
tired, joyful  in  at  last  sharing  the  mj'steries  of  that 
house  and  in  having  an  occupation,  which,  feeling  as 
he  did  then,  was  to  him  an  untold  pleasure. 

The  next  day  at  breakfast.  Monsieur  Alain's  place 
was  vacant,  but  no  one  remarked  upon  it ;  Godefroid 
made  no  allusion  to  the  cause  of  his  absence,  neither 
did  any  one  question  him  as  to  the  mission  the  old  man 
had  entrusted  to  him  ;  he  thus  took  his  first  lesson  in 
discreetness.  Nevertheless,  after  breakfast,  he  did 
take  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  apart  and  told  her  that 
he  should  be  absent  for  some  days. 

"  That  is  good,  my  child,"  replied  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie;  "try  to  do  honor  to  3'our  godfather,  who 
has  answered  for  you  to  his  brothers." 

Godefroid  bade  adieu  to  the  three  remaining  brethren, 
who  made  him  an  affectionate  bow,  b}'  which  they 
seemed  to  bless  his  entrance  upon  a  painful  career. 

Association,  one  of  the  greatest  social  forces,  and 
that  which  made  the  Europe  of  the  middle-ages,  rests  on 
principles  which,  since  1792,  no  longer  exist  in  France, 
where  the  Individual  has  now  triumphed  over  the  State. 
Association  requires,  in  the  first  place,  a  self-devotion 
that  is  not  understood  in  our  da}' ;  also  a  guileless  faith 


The  Brothe7'liood  of  Consolation.  187 

which  is  contrary  to  the  spirit  of  the  nation,  and  lastl}^ 
a  discipline  against  whicli  men  in  these  days  revolt  and 
which  the  Catholic  religion  alone  can  enforce.  The 
moment  an  association  is  formed  among  us,  each  mem- 
ber, returning  to  his  own  home  from  an  assembl}'  where 
noble  sentiments  have  been  proclaimed,  thinks  of  mak- 
ing his  own  bed  out  of  that  collective  devotion,  that 
union  of  forces,  and  of  milking  to  his  own  profit  the 
common  cow,  which,  not  being  able  to  suppl}'  so  many 
individual  demands,  dies  exhausted. 

Who  knows  how  many  generous  sentiments  were 
blasted,  how  many  fruitful  germs  may  have  perished, 
lost  to  the  nation  through  the  infamous  deceptions  of 
the  French  Carbonari,  the  patriotic  subscriptions  to  the 
Champ  d'Asile,  and  other  political  deceptions  which 
ought  to  have  been  grand  and  noble  dramas,  and  proved 
to  be  the  farces  and  the  melodramas  of  police  courts. 
It  is  the  same  with  industrial  association  as  it  is  with 
political  association.  Love  of  self  is  substituted  for 
the  love  of  collective  bodies.  The  corporations  and  the 
Hanse  leagues  of  the  middle-ages,  to  which  ice  shall 
some  day  return.,  are  still  impossible.  Consequently, 
the  only  societies  which  actuall}'  exist  are  those  of  reli- 
gious bodies,  against  whom  a  heav}*  war  is  being  made 
at  this  moment  ;  for  the  natural  tendenc}'  of  sick 
persons  is  to  quarrel  with  remedies  and  often  with 
physicians.      France  ignores  self-abnegation.      There- 


188  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

fore,  no  association  can  live  except  through  religions 
sentiment ;  the  onl}^  sentiment  that  quells  the  rebellions 
of  mind,  the  calculations  of  ambition,  and  greeds  of 
all  kinds.  The  seekers  of  better  worlds  ignore  the 
fact  that  Association  has  such  worlds  to  offer. 

As  he  walked  through  the  streets  Godefroid  felt  him- 
self another  man.  Whoever  could  have  looked  into  his 
being  would  have  admired  the  curious  phenomenon  of 
the  communication  of  collective  power.  He  was  no 
longer  a  mere  man,  he  was  a  tenfold  force,  knowing 
himself  the  representative  of  persons  whose  united 
forces  upheld  his  actions  and  walked  beside  him. 
Bearing  that  power  in  his  heart,  he  felt  within  him  a 
plenitude  of  life,  a  noble  might,  which  uplifted  him. 
It  was,  as  he  afterwards  said,  one  of  the  finest  moments 
of  his  whole  existence ;  he  was  conscious  of  a  new 
sense,  an  omnipotence  more  sure  than  that  of  despots. 
Moral  power  is,  like  thought,  limitless. 

"  To  live  for  others,"  he  thought,  "  to  act  with  others, 
all  as  one,  and  act  alone  as  all  together,  to  have  for 
leader  Charity,  the  noblest,  the  most  living  of  those 
ideal  figures  Christianity  has  made  for  us,  this  is 
indeed  to  live  !  —  Come,  come,  repress  that  pett}^  J03', 
which  father  Alain  laughed  at.  And  yet,  how  singular 
it  is  that  in  seeking  to  set  mj'self  aside  from  life  I  have 
found  the  power  I  have  sought  so  long !  Yes,  the 
world  of  misery  will  belong  to  me  !  " 


The  Brotlierlwod  of  Consolation.  189 


XII. 


A   CASE   TO   INVESTIGATE. 


GoDEFROiD  walked  from  the  cloister  of  Notre-Dame 
to  the  avenue  do  TObservatoire  in  such  a  state  of 
exaltation  that  he  never  noticed  the  length  of  the  way. 

When  he  reached  the  rue  Notre-Dame  des  Champs 
at  the  point  where  it  joins  the  rue  de  TOuest  he  was 
amazed  to  find  (neither  of  these  streets  being  paved  at 
the  time  of  which  we  write)  great  mud-holes  in  that  fine 
oi^en  quarter.  Persons  walked  on  planks  laid  down 
beside  the  houses  and  along  the  marsh}^  gardens,  or  on 
narrow  paths  flanked  on  each  side  b}'  stagnant  water 
which  sometimes  turned  them  into  rivulets. 

By  dint  of  searching  he  found  the  house  he  wanted, 
but  he  did  not  reach  it  without  difl3cult3\  It  was 
evidently  an  abandoned  factor3\  The  building  was 
narrow  and  the  side  of  it  was  a  long  wall  with  many 
windows  and  no  architectural  decoration  whatever. 
None  of  these  windows,  which  were  square,  were  on  the 
lower  floor,  where  there  was  no  opening  but  a  xQvy 
miserable  entrance-door. 


190  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Godefroid  supposed  that  the  proprietor  had  turned 
the  building  into  a  number  of  small  tenements  to  make 
it  profitable,  for  a  written  placard  above  the  door  stated 
that  there  were  "  Several  rooms  to  let."  Godefroid 
rang,  but  no  one  came.  While  he  was  waiting,  a 
person  who  went  by  pointed  out  to  him  that  the  house 
had  another  entrance  on  the  boulevard  where  he  might 
get  admittance. 

Godefroid  followed  this  advice  and  saw  at  the  farther 
end  of  a  little  garden  which  extended  along  the 
boulevard  a  second  door  to  the  house.  The  garden, 
rather  ill-kept,  sloped  downward,  for  there  was  enough 
difference  in  level  between  the  boulevard  and  the  rue 
Notre-Dame  des  Champs  to  make  it  a  sort  of  ditch. 
Godefroid  therefore  walked  along  one  of  the  paths,  at 
the  end  of  which  he  saw  an  old  woman  whose  dilapi- 
dated garments  were  in  keeping  with  the  house. 

"Was  it  3'ou  who  rang  at  the  other  door?"  she 
asked. 

"  Yes,  madame.     Do  joxx  show  the  lodgings?  " 

On  the  woman's  replying  that  she  did,  Godefroid 
inquired  if  the  other  lodgers  were  quiet  persons  ;  his 
occupations,  he  said,  were  such  that  he  needed  silence 
and  peace  ;  he  was  a  bachelor  and  would  be  glad  to 
arrange  with  the  portress  to  do  his  housekeeping. 

On  this  suggestion,  the  portress  assumed  a  gracious 
manner. 


The  BrotherJwod  of  Consolation.  191 

"Monsieur  has  Hillen  on  his  feet  in  coming,  here, 
then,"  she  snid ;  "  except  on  the  Chaumiere  clays  the 
boulevard  is  as  lonely  as  the  Pontine  marshes." 

"Ah!  you  know  the  Pontine  marshes?"  said 
Godefroid. 

"  No,  monsieur,  I  don't ;  but  I  've  got  an  old  gentle- 
man upstairs  whose  daughter  seems  to  get  her  living 
by  being  ill,  and  he  says  that ;  I  only  repeat  it.  The 
poor  old  man  will  be  glad  to  know  that  monsieur  likes 
quiet,  for  a  noisy  neighbor,  he  thinks,  would  kill  his 
daughter.  On  the  second  floor  we  have  two  writers ; 
they  don't  come  in  till  midnight,  and  are  off  before 
eight  in  the  morning.  Thej'  say  thej^  are  authors,  but 
I  don't  know  where  or  when  the}'  write." 

While  speaking,  the  portress  was  showing  Godefroid 
up  one  of  those  horrible  stairways  of  brick  and  wood  so 
ill  put  together  that  it  is  hard  to  tell  whether  the  wood 
is  trying  to  get  rid  of  the  bricks  or  the  bricks  are 
trying  to  get  away  from  the  wood ;  the  gaps  between 
them  were  partly  filled  up  by  what  was  dust  in  summer 
and  mud  in  winter.  The  walls,  of  cracked  and  broken 
plaster,  presented  to  the  eye  more  inscriptions  than  the 
xVcademy  of  Belles-lettres  has  3'et  composed.  The 
portress  stopped  on  the  first  landing. 

"  Here,  monsieur,  are  two  rooms  adjoining  each 
other  and  very  clean,  which  open  opposite  to  those  of 
Monsieur  Bernard  ;  that 's   the   old   gentleman   I  told 


192  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

you  of,  —  quite  a  proper  person.  He  is  decorated  ;  but 
it  seems  he  lias  had  misfortunes,  for  he  never  wears  his 
ribbon.  The}'  former]}'  had  a  servant  from  the  prov- 
inces, but  the}'  sent  him  awa}'  about  three  3'ears  ago ; 
and  now  the  young  son  of  the  lad}'  docs  everything, 
housework  and  all." 

Godefroid  made  a  gesture. 

"Oh!"  cried  the  portress,  "don't  you  be  afraid; 
they  won't  say  anything  to  you  ;  they  never  speak  to 
anyone.  They  came  here  after  the  Revolution  of  July, 
in  1830.  I  think  they  're  provincial  folk  ruined  by  the 
change  of  government ;  they  are  proud,  I  tell  you  !  and 
dumb  as  fishes.  For  three  years,  monsieur,  I  declare 
they  have  not  let  me  do  the  smallest  thing  for  them 
for  fear  they  should  have  to  pay  for  it.  A  hundred 
sous  on  New  Year's  day,  that's  all  I  get  out  of  them. 
Talk  to  me  of  authors,  indeed !  " 

This  gossip  made  Godefroid  hope  he  should  get  some 
assistance  out  of  the  woman,  who  presently  said,  while 
praising  the  healthfulness  of  the  two  rooms  she  offered 
him,  that  she  was  not  a  portress,  but  the  confidential 
agent  of  the  proprietor,  for  whom  she  managed  many 
of  the  affairs  of  the  house. 

"  You  may  have  confidence  in  me,  monsieur,  that 
you  may  !  Madame  Vauthier,  it  is  well  known,  would 
rather  have  nothing  than  a  single  penny  that  ought  to 
go  to  others." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  193 

Madame  Vauthier  soon  came  to  terms  with  Godefroid 
who  would  uot  take  the  rooms  unless  he  could  have 
them  b}^  the  single  month  and  furnished.  These  miser- 
able rooms  of  students  and  unluck}'  authors  were 
rented  furnished  or  unfurnished  as  the  case  might 
be.  The  vast  garret  which  extended  over  the  whole 
building:  was  filled  with  such  furniture.  But  Monsieur 
Bernard,  she  said,  had  furnished  his  own  rooms. 

In  making  Madame  Vauthier  talk,  Godefroid  dis- 
covered she  had  intended  to  keep  boarders  in  the 
building,  but  for.  the  last  five  3'ears  had  not  obtained 
a  single  lodger  of  that  description.  She  lived  herself 
on  the  ground-floor  facing  towards  the  boulevard ;  and 
looked  after  the  whole  house,  by  the  help  of  a  huge 
mastiff,  a  stout  servant-girl,  and  a  lad  who  blacked  the 
boots,  took  care  of  the  rooms,  and  did  the  errands. 

These  two  poor  servants  were,  like  herself,  in  keep- 
ing with  the  povertj'  of  the  house,  that  of  the  tenants, 
and  the  wild  and  tangled  look  of  the  garden.  Both 
were  children  abandoned  hy  their  parents  to  whom  the 
widow  gave  food  for  wages,  —  and  what  food  !  The  lad, 
whom  Godefroid  caught  a  glimpse  of,  wore  a  ragged 
blouse  and  list  slippers  instead  of  shoes,  and  sabots 
when  he  went  out.  With  his  tousled  head,  looking  like 
a  sparrow  when  it  takes  a  bath,  and  his  black  hands,  he 
went  to  measure  wood  at  a  wood-3'ard  on  the  boulevai'd 
as   soon   as  he  had  finished  the  morninsj  work  of  the 

13 


194  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

house;  and  after  his. day's  labor  (which  ends  in  wood- 
3"ards  at  half-past  four  in  the  afternoon)  he  returned  to 
his  domestic  avocations.  He  went  to  the  fountain  of 
the  Observatoire  for  the  water  used  in  the  house, 
which  the  widow  supplied  to  the  tenants,  together  with 
bundles  of  kindling,  sawed  and  tied  up  by  him. 

Nepomucene,  such  was  the  name  of  the  widow 
Vauthier's  slave,  brought  the  daily  journal  to  his 
mistress.  In  summer  the  poor  forsaken  lad  was  a 
waiter  in  the  wine-shops  at  the  barrier ;  and  then  his 
mistress  dressed  him  properl}'. 

As  for  the  stout  girl,  she  cooked  under  direction  of 
the  widow,  and  helped  her  in  another  department  of 
industry  during  the  rest  of  the  day ;  for  Madame 
Vauthier  had  a  business,  —  she  made  list  shoes,  which 
were  bought  and  sold  b}^  pedlers. 

Godefroid  learned  all  these  details  in  about  an  hour's 
time  ;  for  the  widow  took  him  everywhere,  and  showed 
him  the  whole  building,  explaining  its  transformation 
into  a  dwelling.  Until  1828  it  had  been  a  nurser}'  for 
silk-worms,  less  for  the  silk  than  to  obtain  what  the}' 
call  the  eggs.  Eleven  acres  planted  with  mulberries  on 
the  plain  of  Montrouge,  and  three  acres  on  the  rue 
de  rOuest,  afterwards  built  over,  had  supplied  this 
singular  establishment. 

Just  as  the  widow  was  explaining  to  Godefroid  how 
Monsieur   Barbet,    having    lent   monej'    to    an    Italian 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  195 

named  Fresconi,  the  manager  of  the  business,  could 
recover  his  money  only  by  foreclosing  a  mortgage  on 
the  building  and  seizing  the  three  acres  on  the  rue 
Notre-Dame  des  Champs,  a  tall,  spare  old  man  with 
snow-white  hair  appeared  at  the  end  of  the  street  which 
leads  into  the  square  of  the  rue  de  I'Ouest. 

"Ah!  here  he  comes,  just  in  time!"  cried  the 
Vauthier ;  "that's  your  neighbor,  Monsieur  Bernard. 
Monsieur  Bernard  !  "  she  called  out  as  soon  as  the  old 
man  was  within  hearing;  "  3'ou  won't  be  alone  any 
longer  ;  here  is  a  gentleman  who  has  hired  the  rooms 
opposite  to  yours." 

Monsieur  Bernard  turned  his  eyes  on  Godefroid  with 
an  apprehension  it  was  easy  to  fathom ;  the  look 
seemed  to  sa}' :  "The  misfortune  I  feared  has  come 
to  pass." 

"  Monsieur,  "  he  said  aloud,  "  do  you  intend  to  live 
here?" 

"Yes,  monsieur,"  said  Godefroid,  honestl3\  "  It  is 
not  a  resort  for  the  fortunate  of  this  earth  and  it  is 
the  least  expensive  place  I  can  find  in  the  quarter. 
Madame  Vauthier  does  not  pretend  to  lodge  million- 
naires.  Adieu,  for  the  present,  my  good  Madame 
Vauthier,  and  have  everything  ready  for  me  at  six 
o'clock  this  evening ;  I  shall  return  punctually." 

Godefroid  turned  toward  the  square  of  the  rue  de 
rOuest,  walking  slowly,  for  the  anxiety  depicted   on 


196  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

the  face  of  the  tall  old  man  made  him  think  that  he 
would  follow  him  and  come  to  an  explanation.  And, 
in  fact,  after  an  instant's  hesitation  Monsieur  Bernard 
turned  round  and  retraced  his  steps  so  as  to  overtake 
Godefroid. 

"  The  old  villain  !  he'll  prevent  him  from  returning," 
thought  Madame  Vauthier  ;  "  that 's  the  second  time  lie 
has  played  me  the  same  trick.  Patience !  patience ! 
five  days  hence  he  owes  his  rent,  and  if  he  does  n't  pa}' 
sharp  up  I  '11  turn  him  out.  Monsieur  Barbet  is  a  kind 
of  a  tiger  one  must  n't  offend,  and  —  But  I  would  like 
to  know  what  he  's  telling  him.  Felicite  !  Fe'Iicite,  3'ou 
great  gawk  !  where  are  you  ?  "  cried  the  widow  in  her 
rasping,  brutal  voice,  —  she  had  been  using  her  dulcet 
tones  to  Godefroid. 

The  servant-girl,  stout,  squint-eyed,  and  red-haired, 
ran  out. 

"Keep  your  e3'e  on  things,  do  3'Ou  hear  me?  I 
shall  be  back  in  five  minutes." 

And  Madame  Vauthier,  formerly  cook  to  the  pub- 
lisher Barbet,  one  of  the  hardest  lenders  of  mone}'  by 
the  week,  slipped  along  behind  her  two  tenants  so  as 
to  be  able  to  overtake  Godefroid  as  soon  as  his  con- 
versation with  Monsieur  Bernard  came  to  an  end. 

Monsieur  Bernard  walked  slowlj^,  like  a  man  who  is 
undecided,  or  like  a  debtor  seeking  for  excuses  to  pla- 
cate  a   creditor  who  has  just   left   him  with  threats. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolatiori.  197 

Godefroid,  though  some  distance  in  front,  saw  him 
while  pretending  to  look  about  and  examine  the  local- 
ity. It  was  not,  therefore,  till  the}'  reached  the  middle 
of  the  great  sdley  of  the  garden  of  the  Luxembourg  that 
Monsieur  Bernard  came  up  to  the  3'oung  man. 

"Pardon  me,  monsieur,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard, 
bowing  to  Godefroid,  who  returned  his  bow.  "A 
thousand  pardons  for  stopping  you  without  having  the 
honor  of  your  acquaintance  ;  but  is  it  really  your  inten- 
tion to  take  lodgings  in  that  horrible  house  3'ou  have 
just  left?" 

"  But,  monsieur  — " 

"Yes,  yes,"  said  the  old  man,  interrupting  Gode- 
froid, with  a  gesture  of  authority' .  "  I  know  that  you 
may  well  ask  me  bj-  what  right  I  meddle  in  your  affairs 
and  presume  to  question  3'ou.  Hear  me,  monsieur; 
3'ou  are  3'Oung  and  I  am  old ;  I  am  older  than  m3' 
3'ears,  and  the3'  are  sixt3'-seven ;  people  take  me  for 
eight3\  Age  and  misfortunes  justif}'  man3'  things  ;  but 
I  will  not  make  a  plea  of  m3'  whitened  head ;  I  wish  to 
speak  of  3'ourself.  Do  3'ou  know  that  this  quarter  in 
which  you  propose  to  live  is  deserted  b3'  eight  o'clock 
at  night,  and  the  roads  are  full  of  dangers,  the  least  of 
which  is  robber3'  ?  Have  3'ou  noticed  those  wide  spaces 
not  3'et  built  upon,  these  fields,  these  gardens?  You 
ma3'  tell  me  that  I  live  here ;  but,  monsieur,  I  never 
go  out  after  six  o'clock.     You  ma3'  also  remind  me  of 


198  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

the  two  young  men  on  the  second  floor,  above  the  apart- 
ment 3"ou  are  going  to  take.  But,  monsieur,  those  two 
poor  men  of  letters  are  pursued  b}'  creditors.  The}^ 
are  in  hiding ;  they  are  away  in  the  da3'time  and  only 
return  at  night ;  they  have  no  reason  to  fear  robbers 
or  assassins ;  besides,  they  alwa3's  go  together  and  are 
armed.  I  myself  obtained  permission  from  the  prefec- 
ture of  poUce  that  the}''  should  carry  arms." 

"Monsieur,"  said  Godefroid,  ''I  am  not  afraid  of 
robbers,  for  the  same  reasons  that  make  those  gentle- 
men invulnerable  ;  and  I  despise  life  so  heartily  that 
if  I  were  murdered  hy  mistake  I  should  bless  the 
murderer ! " 

"  You  do  not  look  to  me  very  unhappy,"  said  the  old 
man,  examining  Godefroid. 

"  I  have,  at  the  most,  enough  to  get  me  bread  to  live 
on ;  and  I  have  come  to  this  place,  monsieur,  because 
of  its  silent  neighborhood.  Ma}^  I  ask  3'ou  what  inter- 
est you  have  in  driving  me  away  ?  " 

The  old  man  hesitated ;  he  saw  Madame  Vauthier 
close  behind  them.  Godefroid,  who  examined  him 
attentivel}',  was  astonished  at  the  degree  of  thinness 
to  which  grief,  perhaps  hunger,  perhaps  toil,  had  re- 
duced him.  There  were  signs  of  all  those  causes  upon 
that  face,  where  the  parched  skin  clung  to  the  bones  as 
if  it  had  been  burned  by  the  sun  of  Africa.  The  dome 
of  the  forehead,  high  and  threatening,  overshadowed  a 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  199 

pair  of  steel-blue  e3'es,  —  two  cold,  hard,  sagacious, 
penetrating  ej'es,  like  those  of  savages,  surrounded  b}" 
a  black  and  wrinkled  circle.  The  large  nose,  long  and 
very  thin,  and  the  prominent  chin,  gave  the  old  man  a 
strong  resemblance  to  the  well-known  mask  popularly 
ascribed  to  Don  Quixote  ;  but  a  wicked  Don  Quixote, 
without  illusions,  —  a  terrible  Don  Quixote. 

And  yet  the  old  man,  in  spite  of  this  general  aspect 
of  severit}',  betra3'ed  the  weakness  and  timidit}'  which 
indigence  imparts  to  all  unfortunates.  These  two  emo- 
tions seemed  to  have  made  crevices  in  that  solidh'  con- 
structed face  which  the  pickaxe  of  povert}'  was  daih"" 
enlarging.  The  mouth  was  eloquent  and  grave ;  in 
that  feature  Don  Quixote  was  complicated  with  Mon- 
tesquieu's president. 

His  clothing  was  entirel}'  of  black  cloth,  but  cloth 
that  was  white  at  the  seams.  The  coat,  of  an  old- 
fashioned  cut,  and  the  trousers,  showed  various  clumsj' 
darns.  The  buttons  had  evident!}'  just  been  renewed. 
The  coat,  buttoned  to  the  chin,  showed  no  linen ;  and 
the  cravat,  of  a  rust}*  black,  hid  the  greater  part  of  a 
false  collar.  These  clothes,  worn  for  man}'  j'ears,  smelt 
of  poverty.  And  yet  the  lofty  air  of  this  mysterious 
old  man,  his  gait,  the  thought  that  dwelt  on  his  brow 
and  was  manifest  in  his  eyes,  excluded  the  idea  of 
pauperism.  An  observer  would  have  hesitated  how  to 
class  him. 


200  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Monsieur  Bernard  seemed  so  absorbed  that  he  might 
have  been  taken  for  a  teacher  emplo3'ed  in  that  quarter 
of  the  cit}',  or  for  some  learned  man  plunged  in  exacting 
and  tj'rannical  meditation.  Godefroid,  in  any  case, 
would  have  felt  a  curiositj'  which  his  present  mission 
of  benevolence  sharpened  into  powerful  interest. 

"  Monsieur,"  continued  the  old  man,  "  if  I  were  sure 
that  you  are  really  seeking  silence  and  seclusion,  I 
should  say  take  those  rooms  near  mine."  He  raised 
his  voice  so  that  Madame  Vauthier,  who  was  now 
passing  them,  could  hear  him.  "Take  those  rooms. 
I  am  a  father,  monsieur.  I  have  only  a  daughter  and 
a  grandson  to  enable  me  to  bear  the  miseries  of  life. 
Now,  m3'  daughter  needs  silence  and  absolute  tranquil- 
lit}'.  All  those  persons  who,  so  far,  have  looked  at  the 
rooms  3'ou  are  now  considering,  have  listened  to  the 
reasons  and  the  entreaties  of  a  despairing  father.  It 
was  indifferent  to  them  whether  they  lived  in  one  house 
or  another  of  a  quarter  so  deserted  that  plenty  of  lodg- 
ings can  be  had  for  a  low  price.  But  I  see  in  3'ou  a 
fixed  determination,  and  I  beg  you,  monsieur,  not  to 
deceive  me.  Do  you  really  desire  a  quiet  life?  If  not, 
I  shall  be  forced  to  move  and  go  be^'ond  the  barrier, 
and  the  removal  may  cost  me  m\'  daughter's  life." 

If  the  man  could  have  wept,  the  tears  would  have 
covered  his  cheeks  while  he  spoke  ;  as  it  was,  the}' 
were,  to  use  an  expression  now  become  vulgar,  "  in  his 


Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  201 

voice."  He  covered  his  forehead  with  his  hand,  which 
was  nothing  but  bones  and  muscle. 

"  What  is  your  daughter's  illness?  "  asked  Godefroid, 
in  a  persuasive  and  s^'mpathetic  voice. 

"  A  terrible  disease  to  which  physicians  give  various 
names,  but  it  has,  in  truth,  no  name.  My  fortune  is 
lost,"  he  added,  with  one  of  those  despairing  gestures 
made  onl}'  by  the  wretched.  "  The  little  money  that  I 
had,  —  for  in  1830  I  was  cast  from  a  high  position,  — 
in  fact,  all  that  I  possessed,  was  soon  used  up  on  my 
daughter's  illness  ;  her  mother,  too,  was  ruined  by  it,  and 
finally  her  husband.  To-da}'  the  pension  I  receive  from 
the  government  barely  sufl3ces  for  the  actual  necessities 
of  my  poor,  dear,  saintly  child.  The  faculty  of  tears  has 
left  me  ;  I  have  suffered  tortures.  Monsieur,  I  must  be 
granite  not  to  have  died.  But,  no,  God  has  kept  alive 
the  father  that  the  child  might  have  a  nurse,  a  provi- 
dence. Her  poor  mother  died  of  the  strain.  Ah  !  3'ou 
have  come,  young  man,  at  a  moment  when  the  old 
tree  that  never  yet  has  bent  feels  the  axe  —  the 
axe  of  poverty,  sharpened  by  sorrow  —  at  his  roots. 
Yes,  here  am  I,  who  never  complain,  talking  to  you 
of  this  illness  so  as  to  prevent  3'OU  from  coming  to 
the  house ;  or,  if  3'ou  still  persist,  to  implore  you 
not  to  trouble  our  peace.  Monsieur,  at  this  moment 
my  daughter  barks   like  a   dog,  da}-  and  night.'' 

"Is  she  insane?"  asked  Godefroid. 


202  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"Her  mind  is  sound  ;  she  is  a  saint,"  replied  the  old 
man.  "  You  will  presently  think  that  I  am  mad  when 
I  tell  you  all.  Monsieur,  my  onl}-  child,  m}'  daughter 
was  born  of  a  mother  in  excellent  health.  I  never  in 
my  life  loved  but  one  woman,  the  one  I  married.  I 
married  the  daughter  of  one  of  the  bravest  colonels  of 
the  Imperial  guard,  Tarlowski,  a  Pole,  formerly  on  the 
staff  of  the  Emperor.  The  functions  that  I  exercised 
in  my  high  position  demanded  the  utmost  purity  of  life 
and  morals ;  but  I  have  never  had  room  in  my  heart 
for  many  feelings,  and  I  faithfully  loved  my  w4fe,  who 
deserved  such  love.  I  am  a  father  in  like  manner  as  I 
was  a  husband,  and  that  is  telling  you  all  in  one  word. 
My  daughter  never  left  her  mother ;  no  child  has  ever 
lived  more  chastely,  more  truly  a  Christian  than  m\' 
dear  daughter.  She  was  born  more  than  prett}',  she 
was  born  most  beautiful ;  and  her  husband,  a  3^oung 
man  of  whose  morals  I  was  absolutel}^  sure,  —  he  was 
the  son  of  a  friend  of  mine,  the  judge  of  one  of  the 
Royal  courts,  —  did  not  in  an^' way  contribute  to  my 
daughter's  illness." 

Godefroid  and  Monsieur  Bernard  made  an  involuntary 
pause,  and  looked  at  each  other. 

''  Marriage,  as  3'ou  know,  sometimes  changes  a 
5'oung  woman  greatly,"  resumed  the  old  man.  "  The 
first  pregnanc3^  passed  well  and  produced  a  son,  my 
grandson,  who  now  lives  with  us,  the  last  scion  of  two 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  203 

families.  The  second  pregnane}^  was  accompanied  by 
such  extraordinary  S3'mptoms  that  the  physicians,  much 
astonished,  attributed  them  to  the  caprice  of  phe- 
nomena which  sometimes  manifest  themselves  in  this 
state,  and  are  recorded  by  physicians  in  the  annals 
of  science.  My  daughter  gave  birth  to  a  dead  child  ; 
in  fact,  it  was  twisted  and  smothered  by  internal 
movements.  The  disease  had  begun,  the  pregnancy 
counted  for  nothing.  Perhaps  you  are  a  student  of 
medicine  ?  " 

Godefroid  made  a  sign  which  answered  as  well  for 
affirmation  as  for  negation. 

"  After  this  terrible  confinement,"  resumed  Monsieur 
Bernard,  —  "so  terrible  and  laborious  that  it  made  a 
violent  impression  on  m}-  son-in-law  and  began  the 
mortal  melancholy  of  which  he  died,  — my  daughter,  two 
or  three  months  later,  complained  of  a  general  weak- 
ness affecting,  particularly',  her  feet,  which  she  declared 
felt  like  cottonwool.  This  debilit}'  changed  to  paralj'- 
sis,  —  and  what  a  paral3'sis!  My  daughter's  feet  and 
legs  can  be  bent  or  twisted  in  an}'  wa}-  and  she  does  not 
feel  it.  The  limbs  are  there,  apparently'  without  blood 
or  muscles  or  bones.  This  affection,  which  is  not 
connected  with  anything  known  to  science,  spread  to 
the  arms  and  hands,  and  we  then  supposed  it  to  be  a 
disease  of  the  spinal  chord.  Doctors  and  remedies  only 
made  matters  worse  until  at  last  my  poor  daughter 


204  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

could  not  be  moved  without  dislocating  either  the 
shoulders,  the  arms,  or  the  knees.  I  kept  an  admirable 
surgeon  almost  constantl}'  in  the  house,  who,  with  the 
doctor,  or  doctors  (  for  many  came  out  of  interest  in 
the  case),  replaced  the  dislocated  limbs,  —  sometimes, 
would  3'ou  believe  it  monsieur?  three  and  four  times  a 
day!  Ah! —  This  disease  has  so  many  forms  that  I 
forgot  to  tell  you  that  during  the  first  period  of  weak- 
ness, before  the  paralysis  began,  the  strangest  signs 
of  catalepsy  appeared  —  you  know  what  catalepsy  is. 
She  remained  for  days  with  her  e3'es  open,  motionless, 
in  whatever  position  she  was  when  the  attack  seized 
her.  The  worst  symptoms  of  that  strange  affection 
were  shown,  even  those  of  lockjaw.  This  phase  of  her 
illness  suggested  to  me  the  idea  of  employing  magnetism, 
and  I  was  about  to  do  so  when  the  paralysis  began. 
My  daughter,  monsieur,  has  a  miraculous  clear-sighted- 
ness ;  her  soul  has  been  the  theatre  of  all  the  wonders 
of  somnambulism,  just  as  her  body  has  been  that  of  all 
diseases." 

Godefroid  began  to  ask  himself  if  the  old  man  were 
really  sane. 

"  So  that  I,"  continued  Monsieur  Bernard  pajing  no 
attention  to  the  expression  in  Godefroid's  ej'es,  "  even 
I,  a  child  of  the  eighteenth  century,  fed  on  Voltaire, 
Diderot,  Helvetius,  —  I,  a  son  of  the  Revolution,  who 
scoff  at  all  that  antiquit}'  and  the  middle-ages  tell  us  of 


The  Bi'otherhood  of  Consolation.  205 

demoniacal  possession,  —  well,  monsieur,  I  affirm  that 
nothing  but  such  possession  can  explain  the  condition 
of  m}'  child.  As  a  somnambulist  she  has  never  been 
able  to  tell  us  the  cause  of  her  sufferings  ;  she  has 
never  perceived  it,  and  all  the  remedies  she  has  pro- 
posed when  in  that  state,  though  carefully  carried  out, 
have  done  her  no  good.  For  instance,  she  wished  to 
be  wrapped  in  the  carcass  of  a  freshly  killed  pig  ;  then 
she  ordered  us  to  run  the  sharp  points  of  red-hot  mag- 
nets into  her  legs ;  and  to  put  hot  sealing-wax  on  her 
spine  —  " 

Godefroid  looked  at  him  in  amazement. 

"  And  then!  what  endless  other  troubles,  monsieur! 
her  teeth  fell  out ;  she  became  deaf,  then  dumb  ;  and 
then,  after  six  months  of  absolute  dumbness,  utter 
deafness,  speech  and  hearing  returned  to  her !  She 
recovered,  just  as  capriciously^  as  she  had  lost,  the  use 
of  her  hands.  But  her  feet  have  continued  in  the  same 
helpless  condition  for  the  last  seven  years.  She  has 
shown  marked  and  well-characterized  sj'mptoms  of 
h3-drophobia.  Not  onl}'  does  the  sight  of  water,  the 
sound  of  water,  the  presence  of  a  glass  or  a  cup  fling 
her  at  times  into  a  state  of  fury,  but  she  barks  like  a  dog, 
that  melancholy  bark,  or  rather  howl,  a  dog  utters  when 
he  hears  an  organ.  Several  times  we  have  thought  her 
dying,  and  the  priests  have  administered  the  last  sacra- 
ments ;  but  she  has  alwavs  returned  to  life   to  suffer 


206  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

with  her  full  reason  and  the  most  absolute  clearness 
of  mind  ;  for  her  faculties  of  heart  and  soul  are  still 
untouched.  Though  she  has  lived,  monsieur,  she  has 
caused  the  deaths  of  her  mother  and  her  husband,  who 
have  not  been  able  to  endure  the  suffering  of  such 
scenes.  Alas  !  monsieur,  those  distressing  scenes  are 
becoming  worse.  All  the  natural  functions  are  per- 
verted ;  the  Faculty  alone  can  explain  the  strange 
aberration  of  the  organs.  She  was  in  this  state  when  I 
brought  her  from  the  provinces  to  Paris  In  1829,  because 
the  two  or  three  distinguished  doctors  to  whom  I  wrote, 
Desplein,  Bianchon,  and  Haudr}^,  thought  from  my 
letters  that  I  was  telling  them  fables.  Magnetism  was 
then  energetically  denied  by  all  the  schools  of  medicine, 
and  without  saying  that  they  doubted  either  my  word 
or  that  of  the  provincial  doctors,  they  said  we  could 
not  have  observed  thoroughly,  or  else  we  had  been 
misled  by  the  exaggeration  which  patients  are  apt  to 
indulge  in.  But  they  were  forced  to  change  their  minds 
when  they  saw  m}'  daughter  ;  and  it  is  to  the  phenomena 
they  then  observed  that  the  great  researches  made  in 
these  latter  days  into  nervous  diseases  are  owing ;  for 
I  must  tell  you  that  they  class  my  daughter's  singular 
state  as  a  form  of  neurosis.  At  the  last  consultation 
of  these  gentlemen  they  decided  to  stop  all  medicines, 
to  let  nature  alone  and  study  it.  Since  then  I  have 
had  but  one  doctor,  and  he  is  the  doctor  who  attends 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  207 

the  poor  of  this  quarter.  We  do  nothing  for  her  now 
but  alleviate  pain,  for  we  know  not  the  cause  of  it." 

Here  the  old  man  stopped  as  if  overcome  with  this 
harrowing  confidence. 

"  For  the  last  five  3-ears,"  he  continued,  "  my  daugh- 
ter alternates  between  revivals  and  relapses,  but  no 
new  phenomena  have  appeared.  She  suffers  more  or 
less  from  the  varied  nervous  attacks  I  have  briefly 
described  to  you,  but  the  paralj'sis  of  the  legs  and  the 
derangement  of  the  natural  functions  are  constant. 
Tlie  povert}'  into  which  we  fell,  and  which  alas !  is  only 
increasing,  obliged  me  to  leave  the  rooms  that  I  took, 
in  1829,  in  the  faubourg  du  Roule.  M}' daughter  can- 
not endure  the  fatigue  of  moving ;  I  came  near  losing 
her  when  I  brought  her  to  Paris,  and  again  when  I 
removed  her  to  this  house.  Here  m}-  worst  financial 
misfortunes  have  come  upon  me.  After  thirt}''  3'ears  in 
the  public  service  I  was  made  to  wait  four  3'ears  before 
m}'  pension  was  granted.  I  have  only  received  it 
during  the  last  six  months  and  even  then  the  new 
government  has  sternly  cut  it  down  to  the  minimum." 

Godefroid  made  a  gesture  of  surprise  which  seemed 
to  ask  for  a  more  complete  confidence.  The  old  man 
so  understood  it,  for  he  answered  immediatelj^,  casting 
a  reproachful  glance  to  heaven  :  — 

'^  I  am  one  of  the  thousand  victims  of  political 
reaction.     T  conceal  my  name  because  it  is  the  mark  for 


208  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

many  a  revenge.  If  the  lessons  of  experience  were  not 
alwa3s  wasted  from  one  generation  to  another  I  should 
warn  you,  young  man,  never  to  adopt  the  sternness  of 
any  polic}'.  Not  that  I  regret  having  done  my  dut}' ; 
my  conscience  is  perfectl}'  easy  on  that  score ;  but  the 
powers  of  to-day  have  not  that  solidaritj'  which  formerl}- 
bound  all  governments  together  as  governments,  no 
matter  how  different  the}'  might  be  ;  if  to-da}"  they 
reward  zealous  agents  it  is  because  the}"  are  afraid  of 
them.  Tlie  instrument  they  have  used,  no  matter  how 
faithful  it  has  been,  is,  sooner  or  later,  cast  aside.  You 
see  in  me  one  of  the  firmest  supporters  of  the  gov- 
ernment of  the  elder  branch  of  the  Bourbons,  as  I 
was  later  of  the  Imperial  power ;  yet  hei'e  I  am  in 
penury  !  Since  I  am  too  proud  to  beg,  they  have  never 
dreamed  that  I  suffer  untold  misery.  Five  days  ago, 
monsieur,  the  doctor  of  this  quarter  who  takes  care  of 
my  daughter,  or  rather  I  should  say,  observes  her,  told 
me  that  he  was  unable  to  cure  a  disease  the  forms  of 
which  varied  perpetually.  He  says  that  neurotic 
patients  are  the  despair  of  science,  for  the  causes  of 
their  conditions  are  only  to  be  found  in  some  as  yet 
unexplored  system.  He  advised  me  to  have  recourse  to 
a  physician  who  has  been  called  a  quack  ;  but  he  care- 
fully pointed  out  that  this  man  was  a  stranger,  a  Polish 
Jew,  a  refugee,  and  that  the  Parisian  doctors  were 
extremely  jealous  of  certain  wonderful    cures   he  had 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  209 

made,  and  also  of  the  opinion  expressed  by  many  that 
he  is  very  learned  and  extremely  able.  Only,  Dr. 
Berton  says,  he  is  very  exacting  and  overbearing.  He 
selects  his  patients,  and  will  not  allow  an  instant  of  his 
time  to  be  wasted;  and  he  is  —  a  communist!  His 
name  is  Halpersohn.  My  grandson  has  been  twice  to 
find  him,  but  he  is  always  too  busy  to  attend  to  him  ;  he 
has  not  been  to  see  us  ;    I  fully  understand  why." 

''  Why  ?  "  asked  Godefroid. 

*'  Because  m}'  grandson,  who  is  sixteen  years  old,  is 
even  more  shabbily  dressed  than  I  am.  Would  3'ou 
believe  it,  monsieur?  I  dare  not  go  to  that  doctor  ;  my 
clothes  are  so  out  of  keeping  with  a  man  of  my  age 
and  dignit}'.  If  he  saw  the  father  shabby  as  I  am,  and 
the  boy  even  worse,  he  might  not  give  m}'  daughter  the 
needful  attention ;  he  would  treat  us  as  doctors  treat 
the  poor.  And  think,  my  dear  monsieur,  that  I  love 
my  daughter  for  all  the  suffering  she  has  caused  me,  just 
as  I  used  to  love  her  for  the  joys  I  had  in  her.  She 
has  become  angelic.  Alas !  she  is  nothing  now  but  a 
soul,  a  soul  which  beams  upon  her  son  and  me ;  the 
bod}'^  no  longer  exists ;  she  has  conquered  suffering. 
Think  what  a  spectacle  for  a  father  !  The  whole  world, 
to  ni}'  daughter,  is  within  the  walls  of  her  room.  I  keep 
it  filled  with  flowers,  for  she  loves  them.  She  reads  a 
great  deal ;  and  when  she  has  the  use  of  her  hands  she 
works    like  a  fairy.      She    has   no    conception   of  the 

14 


210  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

horrible  poverty  to  which  we  are  reduced.  This  makes 
our  household  way  of  life  so  strange,  so  eccentric,  that 
we  cannot  admit  visitors.  Do  you  now  understand 
me,  monsieur?  Can  you  not  see  how  impossible  a 
neighbor  is?  I  should  have  to  ask  so  much  forbear- 
ance from  him  that  the  obligation  would  be  too  heavy. 
Besides,  I  have  no  time  for  friends;  I  educate  my 
grandson,  and  I  have  so  much  other  work  to  do  that  I 
only  sleep  three,  or  at  most  four  hours  at  night." 

"  Monsieur,"  said  Godefroid,  who  had  listened 
patiently,  observing  the  old  man  with  sorrowful 
attention,  ''  I  will  be  your  neighbor,  and  I  will  help 
you." 

A  scornful  gesture,  even  an  impatient  one,  escaped 
the  old  man,  for  he  was  one  who  believed  in  nothing 
good  in  human  nature. 

*'  I  will  help  you,"  pursued  Godefroid,  taking  his  hand, 
"but  in  my  own  waj'.  Listen  to  me.  What  do  you 
mean  to  make  of  3'our  grandson  ?  " 

' '  He  is  soon  to  enter  the  Law  school.  I  am  bringing 
him  up  to  the  bar." 

"  Then  he  will  cost  you  six  hundred  francs  a 
year." 

The  old  man  made  no  reply. 

"  I  myself,"  continued  Godefroid  after  a  pause, 
"  have  nothing,  but  I  may  be  able  to  do  much.  I  will 
obtain  the  Polish  doctor  for  you.    And  if  your  daughter 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  211 

is  curable  she  shall  be  cured.  We  will  find  some  waj^ 
of  paying  Halpersohn." 

"  Oh !  if  my  daughter  be  cured  I  will  make  a  sacri- 
fice I  can  make  but  once,"  cried  the  old  man.  ''  I  will 
sell  the  pear  I  have  kept  for  a  thirsty  day." 

"  You  shall  keep  the  pear  —  " 

"  Oh  youth  !  youth  ! "  exclaimed  Monsieur  Bernard, 
shaking  his  head.  "  Adieu,  monsieur ;  or  rather,  au 
revoir.  This  is  the  hour  for  the  Library,  and  as  my 
books  are  all  sold  I  am  obliged  to  go  there  every  day 
to  do  my  work.  I  shall  bear  in  mind  the  kindness  you 
express,  but  I  must  wait  and  see  whether  you  will  grant 
us  the  consideration  I  must  ask  from  my  neighbor. 
That  is  all  I  expect  of  you." 

"Yes,  monsieur,  let  me  be  your  neighbor;  for,  I 
assure  3'ou,  Barbet  is  not  a  man  to  allow  the  rooms  to 
be  long  unrented,  and  you  might  have  far  worse  neigh- 
bors than  I.  I  do  not  ask  you  to  believe  in  me,  onlj*  to 
let  me  be  useful  to  you." 

''What  object  have  you?"  said  the  old  man,  pre- 
paring to  go  down  the  steps  from  the  cloister  of  the 
Chartreux  which  lead  from  the  great  allej'  of  the 
Luxembourg  to  the  rue  d'Enfer. 

"  Did  you  never,  in  your  public  functions,  oblige  any 
one?  " 

The  old  man  looked  at  Godefroid  with  frowning 
brows  ;  his  eyes  were  full  of  memories,  like  a  man  who 


212  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

turns  the  leaves  of  his  book  of  life,  seeking  for  the  action 
to  which  he  owed  this  gratitude ;  then  he  turned  away 
coldlj',  with  a  bow,  full  of  doubt. 

''  Well,  for  a  first  investigation  I  did  not  frighten  him 
much,"  thought  Godefroid. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  213 


XIII. 

FURTHER    INVESTIGATIONS. 

Godefroid  now  went  to  the  rue  d'Enfer,  the  address 
given  him  by  Monsieur  Alain,  and  there  found  Dr. 
Berton,  a  cold,  grave  man,  who  astonished  him  much 
by  confirming  all  the  details  given  by  Monsieur  Bernard 
about  his  daughter's  illness.  From  him  Godefroid 
obtained  the  address  of  Halpersohn. 

This  Polish  doctor,  since  so  celebrated,  then  lived  in 
Chaillot,  rue  Marbeuf,  in  an  isolated  house  where  he 
occupied  the  first  floor.  General  Romanus  Zarnowski 
lived  on  the  second  floor,  and  tlie  servants  of  the  two 
refugees  inhabited  the  garret  of  this  little  house,  which 
had  but  two  stories.  Godefroid  did  not  find  Halpersohn, 
and  was  told  that  he  had  gone  into  the  provinces,  sent 
for  by  a  rich  patient ;  he  was  almost  glad  not  to  meet 
him,  for  in  his  hurry  he  had  forgotten  to  supply  himself 
with  money ;  and  he  now  went  back  to  the  hotel  de  la 
Chanterie  to  get  some. 

These  various  trips  and  the  time  consumed  in  dining 
at  a  restaurant  in  the  rue  de  I'Odeon  brought  Godefroid 
to  the  hour  when  lie  had  said  he  would  return  and  take 


214  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

possession  of  his  lodging  on  the  boulevard  du  Mont- 
Parnasse.  Nothing  could  be  more  forlorn  tlian  the 
manner  in  which  Madame  Vauthier  had  furnished  the 
two  rooms.  It  seemed  as  though  the  woman  let  rooms 
with  the  express  purpose  that  no  one  should  stay  in 
them.  Evidently  the  bed,  chairs,  tables,  bureau,  secre- 
tary, curtains,  came  from  forced  sales  at  auction, 
articles  massed  together  in  lots  as  having  no  separate 
intrinsic  value. 

Madame  Vautliier,  with  her  hands  on  her  hips,  stood 
waiting  for  thanlis  ;  she  took  Godefroid's  smile  for  one 
of  surprise. 

' '  There  !  I  picked  out  for  you  the  very  best  we  have, 
my  dear  Monsieur  Godefroid,"  she  said  with  a  trium- 
phant air.  *'  See  those  pretty  silk  curtains,  and  the 
mahogan}"  bedstead  which  has  n't  got  a  worm-hole  in  it ! 
It  formerlj^  belonged  to  the  Prince  of  Wissembourg. 
When  he  left  his  house,  rue  Louis-le-Grand,  in  1809,  I 
was  the  kitchen-girl.  From  there,  I  went  to  live  as 
cook  with  the  present  owner  of  this  house." 

Godefroid  stopped  the  flux  of  confidences  by  paying 
a  month's  rent  in  advance ;  and  he  also  gave,  in 
advance,  the  six  francs  he  was  to  pay  Madame  Vauthier 
for  the  care  of  his  rooms.  At  that  moment  he  heard 
barking,  and  if  he  had  not  been  dul}'  warned  by  Mon- 
sieur Bernard,  he  would  certainly  have  supposed  that 
his  neighbor  kept  a  dog. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  215 

'^  Does  that  dog  bark  at  night?  "  he  asked. 

''Oh!  don't  be  uneasj',  monsieur;  3'ou '11  onl}' have 
one  week  to  stand  those  persons.  Monsieur  Bernard 
can't  pa}-  his  rent  and  we  are  going  to  put  him  out. 
They  are  queer  people,  I  tell  you  !  I  have  never  seen 
their  dog.  That  animal  is  sometimes  months,  3'es,  six 
months  at  a  time  without  making  a  sound ;  30U  might 
think  the}'  had  n't  a  dog.  The  beast  never  leaves  the 
lady's  room.  There  's  a  sick  lad}'  in  there,  and  very 
sick,  too ;  she  's  never  been  out  of  her  room  since  she 
came.  Old  Monsieur  Bernard  works  hard,  and  the  son, 
too  ;  the  lad  is  a  day-scholar  at  the  school  of  Louis-le- 
Grand,  where  he  is  nearly  through  his  philosophy 
course,  and  only  sixteen,  too;  that's  something  to 
boast  of !  but  the  little  scamp  has  to  work  like  one  pos- 
sessed. Presently  you  '11  hear  them  bring  out  the 
plants  they  keep  in  the  lady's  room  and  carry  in  fresh 
ones.  They  themselves,  the  grandfather  and  the  boy, 
only  eat  bread,  though  they  buy  flowers  and  all  sorts  of 
dainties  for  the  lady.  She  must  be  very  ill,  not  to  leave 
her  room  once  since  entering  it ;  and  if  one 's  to  believe 
Monsieur  Berton,  the  doctor,  she  '11  never  come  out 
except  feet  foremost." 

"What  does  this  Monsieur  Bernard  do?  " 

"  It  seems  he  's  a  learned  man  ;  he  writes  and  goes 
about  to  libraries.  Monsieur  lends  him  money  on  his 
compositions." 


216  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

' '  Monsieur  ?  who  is  he  ?  " 

"The  proprietor  of  the  house,  Monsieur  Barbet,  the 
old  bookseller.  He  is  a  Norman  who  used  to  sell 
green  stuff  in  the  streets,  and  afterwards  set  up  a 
bookstall,  in  1818,  on  the  quay.  Then  he  got  a  little 
shop,  and  now  he  is  very  rich.  He  is  a  kind  of  a  Jew, 
with  a  score  of  trades  :  he  was  even  a  partner  with  the 
Italian  who  built  this  barrack  to  lodge  silk-worms." 

"  So  this  house  is  a  refuge  for  unfortunate  authors?" 
said  Godefroid. 

"Is  monsieur  unluckily  one  himself?"  asked  the 
widow  Vauthier. 

"  I  am  only  just  starting,"  replied  Godefroid. 

"■Oh!  ray  dear  monsieur,  take  my  advice  and  don't 
go  on  ;  journalist?  well,  —  I  won't  say  anj'thing  against 
that." 

Godefroid  could  not  help  laughing  as  he  bade  good- 
night to  the  portress,  who  thus,  all  unconsciously, 
represented  the  bourgeoisie.  As  he  went  to  bed  in 
the  horrible  room,  floored  with  bricks  that  were  not 
even  colored,  and  hung  with  a  paper  at  seven  sous  a 
roll,  Godefroid  not  onl}-  regretted  his  little  rooms  in 
the  rue  Chanoinesse,  but  also  the  societ}^  of  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie.  He  felt  a  void  in  his  soul.  He  had 
already  acquired  habits  of  mind  ;  and  could  not  remem- 
ber to  have  so  keenly  regretted  anything  in  all  his  former 
life  as  this  break  in  his  new  existence.    These  thoughts, 


The  Brotlterhood  of  Consolation.  217 

as  they  pressed  upon  him,  had  a  great  effect  upon  his 
soul ;  he  felt  that  no  life  could  compare  in  value  with 
the  one  he  sought  to  embrace,  and  his  resolution  to 
emulate  the  good  old  Alain  became  unshakable.  With- 
out having  any  vocation  for  the  work,  he  had  the  will 
to  do  it. 

The  next  day  Godefroid,  already  habituated  by  his 
new  life  to  rising  early,  saw  from  his  window  a  young 
man  about  seventeen  years  of  age,  dressed  in  a  blouse, 
who  was  coming  back,  no  doubt  from  the  public  foun- 
tain, bringing  a  crock  full  of  water  in  each  hand.  The 
face  of  this  lad,  who  was  not  aware  that  he  was  seen, 
revealed  his  feelings,  and  never  had  Godefroid  observed 
one  so  artless  and  so  melancholy.  The  graces  of 
youth  were  all  repressed  by  povertj',  b}'  stud}',  hy  great 
ph3'sical  fatigue.  Monsieur  Bernard's  grandson  was 
remarkable  for  a  complexion  of  extreme  whiteness, 
which  the  contrast  with  his  dark  hair  seemed  to  make 
still  whiter.  He  made  three  trips ;  when  he  returned 
from  the  last  he  saw  some  men  unloading  a  cord  of 
wood  which  Godefroid  had  ordered  the  night  before, 
for  the  long-delayed  winter  of  1838  was  beginning  to  be 
felt ;  snow  had  fallen  slightly  during  the  night. 

Nepomucene,  who  had  begun  his  daj'  by  going  for 
the  wood  (on  which  Madame  Yauthier  levied  a  hand- 
some tribute),  spoke  to  the  3'oung  lad  while  waiting 
until  the  woodman  had  sawed  enough  for  him  to  carry 


218  TJie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

upstairs.  It  was  eas}-  to  see  that  the  sudden  cold  was 
causing  anxiety  to  Monsieur  Bernard's  grandson,  and 
that  the  sight  of  the  wood,  as  well  as  that  of  the  threat- 
ening sk}',  warned  him  that  they  ought  to  be  making 
their  own  provision  for  wintry  weather.  Suddenly, 
however,  as  if  reproaching  himself  for  lost  time,  he 
seized  his  crocks  and  hastil}'  entered  the  house.  It  was, 
in  fact,  half-past  seven  o'clock,  the  hour  was  just  ring- 
ing from  the  belfry  of  the  convent  of  the  Visitation, 
and  he  was  due  at  the  college  of  Louis-le-Grand  by 
half-past  eight. 

As  the  3'oung  lad  entered  the  house,  Godefroid  went 
to  his  door  to  admit  Madame  Vauthier  who  brought 
her  new  lodger  the  wherewithal  to  make  a  fire,  and  he 
thus  became  the  witness  of  a  scene  which  took  place 
on  the  landing. 

A  neighboring  gardener,  who  had  rung  several 
times  at  Monsieur  Bernard's  door  without  making  any 
one  hear  (for  the  bell  was  wrapped  in  paper),  had  a 
rather  rough  dispute  with  the  young  lad  who  now  came 
up  with  the  water,  demanding  to  be  paid  for  the  flowers 
he  had  supplied.  As  the  man  raised  his  voice  angrily 
Monsieur  Bernard  appeared.  *'  Auguste,"  he  said  to 
his  grandson,  "  dress  yourself,  it  is  time  for  school." 

He  himself  took  the  two  crocks  of  water,  carried 
them  into  the  first  of  his  rooms,  in  which  were  many 
l)ots  of  flowers,  and  returned  to  speak  to  the  gardener. 


TJte  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  219 

careful!}'  closing  the  door  behind  him.  Godefroid's 
door  was  open,  for  Nepomucene  had  begun  his  trips, 
and  was  stacking  the  wood  in  the  front  room.  The 
gardener  was  silent  in  presence  of  Monsieur  Bernard, 
whose  tall  figure,  robed  in  a  violet  silk  dressing-gown, 
buttoned  to  the  throat,  gave  him  an  imposing  air. 

''You  might  ask  for  what  is  owing  to  you  without 
such  noise,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard. 

"  Be  fair,  mj'  dear  monsieur,"  said  the  gardener. 
"  You  agreed  to  pay  me  every  week,  and  it  is  now  three 
months,  ten  weeks,  since  I  have  had  a  penn}' ;  you  owe 
me  a  hundred  and  twenty  francs.  AVe  let  out  our 
plants  to  rich  people  who  pay  us  when  we  ask  for  the 
money  ;  but  this  is  the  fifth  time  I  have  come  to  3'ou 
for  it.  I  have  m}'  rent  to  pay  and  the  wages  of  m}'" 
men ;  I  am  not  a  bit  richer  than  you.  My  wife,  who 
supplied  30U  with  eggs  and  milk,  will  not  come  here 
any  more ;  j^ou  owe  her  thirty  francs.  She  does  not 
like  to  dun  you,  for  she  is  kind-hearted,  that  she  is  !  If 
I  listened  to  her,  I  could  n't  do  business  at  all.  And 
so  I,  who  am  not  so  soft  —  you  understand  ?  " 

Just  then  Auguste  came  out  dressed  in  a  shabby 
little  green  coat  with  cloth  trousers  of  the  same  color, 
a  black  cravat,  and  worn-out  boots.  These  clothes, 
though  carefuU}'  brushed,  showed  the  lowest  degree  of 
poverty  ;  the}'  were  all  too  short  and  too  narrow,  so 
that   the   lad    seemed    likely    to    crack  them    at  ever}' 


220  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

motion.  The  seams  were  white,  the  edges  curled,  the 
buttonholes  torn  in  spite  of  many  mendings  ;  the  whole 
presenting  to  the  most  unobservant  eyes  the  heart- 
breaking stigmas  of  honest  penur}'.  This  livery  con- 
trasted sadly  with  the  youth  of  the  lad,  who  now 
disappeared  munching  a  crust  of  stale  bread  with  his 
strong  and  handsome  teeth.  He  breakfasted  thus  on 
his  wa}'  to  the  rue  Saint-Jacques,  carrying  his  books 
and  papers  under  his  arm,  and  wearing  a  little  cap 
much  too  small  for  his  head,  from  which  stuck  out  a 
mass  of  magnificent  black  hair. 

In  passing  before  his  grandfather  the  lad  had  given 
him  rapidl}"  a  look  of  deep  distress ;  for  he  knew  him 
to  be  in  an  almost  hopeless  difficult}',  the  consequences 
of  which  might  be  terrible.  To  leave  room  for  the  boy 
to  pass,  the  gardener  had  stepped  back  to  the  sill  of 
Godefroid's  door,  and  as  at  that  moment  Nepomucene 
arrived  with  a  quantity  of  wood,  the  creditor  was 
forced  to  retreat  into  the  room. 

"Monsieur  Bernard!"  cried  the  widow  Vauthier, 
"  do  you  think  Monsieur  Godefroid  hired  his  rooms  to 
have  you  hold  3'our  meetings  in  them?" 

"Excuse  me,  madame,"  said  the  gardener,  "but 
there  was  no  room  on  the  landing." 

"  I  did  n't  say  that  for  3'ou,  Monsieur  Cartier,"  said 
the   widow. 

"  Remain  where  you  are !  "  cried  Godefroid,  address- 


The  Brotlierliood  of  Consolation.  221 

ing  the  gardener;  "and  3'ou,  my  dear  neighbor,"  he 
added,  looking  at  Monsieur  Bernard,  who  seemed 
insensible  to  the  cruel  insult,  "if  it  is  convenient  to 
you  to  have  an  explanation  with  your  gardener  in  my 
room,  come  in." 

The  old  man,  half  stupefied  with  his  troubles,  cast  a 
look  of  gratitude  on  Godefroid. 

"As  for  you,  m}'  dear  Madame  Vauthier,"  continued 
Godefroid,  "  don't  be  so  rough  with  monsieur,  who 
is  in  the  first  place  an  old  man,  and  one  to  whom  you 
owe  the  obligation  of  my  lodging  here." 

"  Oh,  pooh  !  "  said  the  widow. 

"  Besides,  if  poor  people  do  not  help  each  other,  who 
will  help  them  ?  Leave  us,  Madame  Vauthier ;  1  '11 
blow  the  fire  m3'self.  Have  the  rest  of  my  wood  put 
in  your  cellar;  I  am  sure  you  will  take  good  care 
of  it." 

Madame  Vauthier  disappeared,  for  Godefroid  in  tell- 
ing her  to  take  care  of  his  wood  had  given  an  opportunity 
to  her  greed. 

"  Come  in  this  way,"  said  Godefroid,  ofljering  chairs 
to  both  debtor  and  creditor. 

The  old  man  conversed  standing,  but  the  gardener 
sat  down. 

"  My  good  Monsieur  Cartier/'  went  on  Godefroid, 
"  rich  people  do  not  pa}'  as  regularly'  as  you  say  they 
do,  and  you  ought  not  to  dun  a  worthy  man  for  a  few 


222  Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

louis.  Monsieur  draws  his  pension  every  six  montlis, 
and  he  could  not  make  you  an  assignment  of  it  for  such 
a  paltr}^  sum.  I  am  willing  to  advance  the  mone}^,  if 
3'ou  absolutely  insist  on  having  it." 

"  Monsieur  Bernard  drew  his  pension  two  weeks  ago, 
and  has  not  paid  me.  I  am  sorry  to  trouble  him,  of 
course." 

"  Have  you  furnished  him  with  plants  all  along?" 

"Yes,  monsieur,  for  six  3'ears,  and  he  has  always 
paid  me." 

Monsieur  Bernard,  who  was  listening  to  some  sound 
in  his  own  rooms  and  paying  no  attention  to  what  was 
being  said,  now  heard  a  cry  through  the  partitions  and 
hurriedly  went  away  without  a  word. 

"  Come,  come,  m}' good  man,"  said  Godefroid,  taking 
advantage  of  the  old  man's  absence,  "  bring  some  nice 
flowers,  your  best  flowers,  this  very  morning,  and  tell 
your  wife  to  send  the  eggs  and  milk  as  usual ;  I  will 
pa}^  3'Ou  this  evening." 

Cartier  looked  oddl}'  at  Godefroid. 

''  Then  3'Ou  must  know  more  than  Madame  Vauthier 
does  ;  she  sent  me  word  to  huny  if  I  hoped  to  be  paid," 
he  said.  "  Neither  she  nor  I  can  make  out  why  folks 
who  eat  nothing  but  bread  and  the  odds  and  ends  of 
vegetables,  bits  of  carrots,  turnips,  and  such  things, 
which  the3'  get  at  the  back-doors  of  restaurants,  —  3'es, 
monsieur,  I  assure  3'ou  T  came  one  da3"  on  the  little 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  223 

fellow  filling  an  old  handbag,  —  well,  I  want  to  know  why 
such  persons  spend  nearly  forty  francs  a  month  on 
flowers.  The}^  say  the  old  man's  pension  is  onl\'  three 
thousand  francs." 

"  At  any  rate,"  said  Godefroid,  "  it  is  not  your  busi- 
ness to  complain  if  they  ruin  themselves  in  flowers." 

"  That 's  true,  monsieur,  —  provided  they  pay  me." 

"  Bring  your  bill  to  me." 

*'Ver3^  good,  monsieur,"  said  the  gardener,  with  a 
tinge  of  respect.  "  Monsieur  no  doubt  wants  to  see 
the  mysterious  lad}'." 

"  M}'  good  friend,"  said  Godefroid,  stiffly,  "  3'ou  for- 
get yourself.  Go  home  now  and  bring  fresh  plants  for 
those  you  are  to  take  away.  If  you  can  also  supply 
me  with  good  cream  and  fresh  eggs  I  will  take  them, 
and  I  will  go  this  morning  and  take  a  look  at  3'our 
establishment." 

"  It  is  one  of  the  finest  In  Paris,  monsieur.  I  exhibit 
at  the  Luxembourg.  My  garden,  which  covers  three 
acres,  is  on  the  boulevard,  behind  the  garden  of  La 
Grande-Chaumi^re." 

''Very  good,  Monsieur  Cartier.  You  are.  I  see, 
much  richer  than  I.  Have  some  consideration  for  us, 
therefore.  Who  knows  how  soon  we  ma}-  have  mutual 
need  of  each  other?" 

The  gardener  went  awa}',  much  puzzled  as  to  who 
and  what  Godefroid  might  be. 


224  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

"  And  3'et  I  was  once  just  like  that,"  thought  Gode- 
froid,  blowing  his  fire.  "  What  a  fine  specimen  of  the 
bourgeois  of  to-da}' !  —  gossiping,  inquisitive,  craz}'  for 
equalit}',  jealous  of  his  customers,  furious  at  not  know- 
ing wli}'  a  poor  sick  woman  stag's  in  her  room  without 
being  seen  ;  concealing  his  wealth,  and  yet  vain  enough 
to  betray  it  when  he  thinks  it  will  put  him  above  his 
neighbor.  That  man  ought  to  be  the  lieutenant  of  his 
company.  I  dare  sa}^  he  is.  With  what  ease  he  plays 
the  scene  of  Monsieur  Dimanche !  A  little  more  and  I 
should  have  made  a  friend  of  Monsieur  Cartier." 

The  old  man  broke  into  this  soliloquy,  which  proves 
how  Godefroid's  ideas  had  changed  in  four  months. 

"  Excuse  me,  neighbor,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard,  in  a 
troubled  voice ;  "I  see  3^ou  have  sent  that  gardener 
away  satisfied,  for  he  bowed  civilly  to  me  on  the  land- 
ing. It  seems,  3'oung  man,  as  if  Providence  had  sent 
you  to  me  at  the  ver}'  moment  I  was  about  to  succumb. 
Alas  !  the  hard  talk  of  that  man  must  have  shown  you 
many  things  !  It  is  true  that  I  received  the  half-yearly 
payment  of  my  pension  two  weeks  ago  ;  but  I  had  more 
pressing  debts  than  his,  and  I  was  forced  to  put  aside 
m}'  rent  for  fear  of  being  turned  out  of  the  house.  I 
have  told  3'ou  the  state  m}^  daughter  is  in,  and  3'ou 
have  probably  heard  her." 

He  looked  uneasily  at  Godefroid,  who  made  him  an 
aflfirmative  sign. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  225 

"  Well,  then,  you  know  it  would  be  her  death  war- 
rant, for  I  should  then  be  compelled  to  put  her  in  a 
hospital.  My  grandson  and  I  were  fearing  that  end 
this  morning ;  but  we  do  not  dread  Cartier  so  much  as 
we  do  the  cold." 

"My  dear  Monsieur  Bernard,"  said  Godefroid,  "I 
have  plenty  of  wood  ;    take  all  you  want." 

*'Ah!"  said  the  old  man,  "but  how  can  I  ever 
return  such  services?" 

"By  accepting  them  without  difficulty,"  said  Gode- 
froid, quickly,  "  and  by  giving  me  3'our  confidence." 

"But  what  are  my  claims  to  so  much  generosit}-?" 
asked  Monsieur  Bernard,  becoming  once  more  distrust- 
ful. "Ah!  ray  pride  and  that  of  m}'  grandson  are 
lowered  indeed!"  he  cried  bitterly.  "We  are  com- 
pelled to  offer  explanations  to  the  few  creditors  —  only 
two  or  three  —  whom  we  cannot  pay.  The  utterly 
unfortunate  have  no  creditors ;  to  have  them  one  must 
needs  present  an  exterior  of  some  show,  and  that 
we  have  now  lost.  But  I  have  not  yet  abdicated  my 
common-sense,  —  my  reason,"  he  added,  as  if  he  were 
talking  to  himself. 

"Monsieur,"  replied  Godefroid,  gravely,  "the  his- 
tory you  gave  me  yesterday  would  touch  even  a 
usurer." 

"No,  no!  for  Barbet,  that  publisher,  the  proprietor 
of  this  house,  is  speculating  on  m}-  povert}',  and  has 

15 


226  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

sent  the  Vauthier  woman,  his  former  cook,  to  sp}' 
upon  it." 

"How  can  he  speculate  upon  you?"  asked  Gode- 
froid. 

"I  will  tell  you  later,"  replied  the  old  man.  "M}' 
daughter  is  cold,  and  since  you  offer  it,  I  am  reduced 
to  accept  alms,  were  it  even  from  m}^  worst  enemy." 

"  I  will  carry  in  some  wood,"  said  Godefroid,  gather- 
ing up  ten  or  a  dozen  sticks,  and  taking  them  into  Mon- 
sieur Bernard's  first  room.  The  old  man  took  as  man}'' 
himself;  and  when  he  saw  the  little  provision  safely 
deposited,  he  could  not  restrain  the  sill}',  and  even 
idiotic  smile  with  which  those  who  are  saved  from  a 
mortal  danger,  which  has  seemed  to  them  inevitable, 
express  their  joy  ;  for  terror  still  lingers  in  their  joy. 

"Accept  things  from  me,  my  dear  Monsieur  Bernard, 
without  reluctance  ;  and  when  your  daughter  is  safe, 
and  you  are  once  more  at  ease,  we  will  settle  all. 
Meantime,  let  me  act  for  you.  I  have  been  to  see 
that  Polish  doctor ;  unfortunately  he  is  absent ;  he 
will  not  be  back  for  two  days." 

At  this  moment  a  voice  which  seemed  to  Godefroid 
to  have,  and  really  had,  a  fresh,  melodious  ring,  cried 
out,   "Papa,  papa!"    on  two  expressive  notes. 

While  speaking  to  the  old  man,  Godefroid  had 
noticed  that  the  jambs  of  a  door  leading  to  another 
room  were  painted   in   a  delicate    manner,   altogether 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  227 

different  from  that  of  the  rest  of  the  lodging.  His 
curiosity,  already  so  keenly  excited,  was  now  roused 
to  the  highest  pitch.  He  was  conscious  that  his  mis- 
sion of  benevolence  was  becoming  nothing  more  than 
a  pretext ;  what  he  really  wanted  was  to  see  that  sick 
woman.  He  refused  to  believe  for  an  instant  that  a 
creature  endowed  with  such  a  voice  could  be  an  object 
of  repulsion. 

"You  do,  indeed,  take  too  much  trouble,  papa  !  "  said 
the  voice.  "Why  not  have  more  servants?  —  and  at 
your  age,  too  !     Good  God  !  " 

' '  But  you  know,  my  dear  Vanda,  that  the  bo}'  and 
I  cannot  bear  that  any  one  should  wait  upon  you 
but  ourselves ! '' 

Those  sentences,  which  Godefroid  heard  through  the 
door,  or  rather  divined,  for  a  heav}-  portiere  on  the 
inside  smothered  the  sounds,  gave  him  an  inkling  of 
the  truth.  The  sick  woman,  surrounded  b}'  luxur}*,  was 
evidently  kept  in  ignorance  of  the  real  situation  of  her 
father  and  son.  The  violet  silk  dressing-gown  of  Mon- 
sieur Bernard,  the  flowers,  his  remarks  to  Cartier,  had 
already  roused  some  suspicion  of  this  in  Godefroid's 
mind.  The  young  man  stood  still  where  he  was,  be- 
wildered by  this  prodig}'  of  paternal  love.  The  con- 
trast, such  as  he  imagined  it,  between  tlie  invalid's 
room  and  the  rest  of  that  squalid  place,  —  yes,  it  was 
bewildering ! 


228  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 


XIV. 

HOW  THE  POOR  AND  HELPLESS  ARE  PREYED  UPON. 

Through  the  door  of  a  third  chamber,  which  the  old 
man  had  left  open,  Godefroid  beheld  two  cots  of  painted 
wood,  like  those  of  the  cheapest  boarding-schools,  each 
with  a  straw  bed  and  a  thin  mattress,  on  which  there 
was  but  one  blanket.  A  small  iron  stove  like  those 
that  porters  cook  b^-,  near  which  la}'  a  few  squares  of 
peat,  would  alone  have  shown  the  povert}-  of  the  house- 
hold without  the  help  of  other  details. 

Advancing  a  step  or  two,  Godefroid  saw  utensils  such 
as  the  poorest  persons  use,  —  earthenware  jugs,  and  pans 
in  which  potatoes  floated  in  d\vly  water.  Two  tables 
of  blackened  wood,  covered  with  books  and  papers, 
stood  before  the  windows  that  looked  out  upon  the  rue 
Notre-Dame  des  Champs,  and  indicated  the  nocturnal 
occupations  of  father  and  son.  On  each  of  the  tables 
was  a  flat  iron  candlestick,  such  as  are  used  by  the  ver^' 
poor,  and  in  them  Godefroid  noticed  tallow-candles 
of  the  kind  that  are  sold  at  eight  to  the  pound. 

On  a  third  table  glittered  two  forks  and  spoons  and 
another  little  spoon  of  silver-gilt,  together  with  plates, 
bowls,  and  cups  of  Sevres  china,  and  a  silver-gilt  knife 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  229 

and  fork  in  an  open  case,  all  evidently  for  the  service 
of  the  sick  woman. 

The  stove  was  lighted  ;  the  water  in  the  copper  was 
steaming  slightlj'.  A  painted  wooden  closet  or  ward- 
robe contained,  no  doubt,  the  linen  and  clothing  of 
Monsieur  Bernard's  daughter.  On  the  old  man's  bed 
Godefroid  noticed  that  the  habiliments  he  had  worn  the 
night  before  lay  spread  as  a  covering.  The  floor, 
evidently  seldom  swept,  looked  like  that  of  a  boy's 
class-room.  A  six-pound  loaf  of  bread,  from  which 
some  slices  had  been  cut,  was  on  a  shelf  above  the 
table.  Here  was  poverty  in  its  last  stages,  poverty 
resolutel}'  accepted  with  stern  endurance,  making  shift 
with  the  lowest  and  poorest  means.  A  strong  and 
sickening  odor  came  from  this  room,  which  was  rarely 
cleaned. 

The  antechamber,  in  which  Godefroid  stood,  was  at 
any  rate  decent,  and  he  suspected  that  it  served  to  con- 
ceal the  horrors  of  the  room  in  which  the  grandfather 
and  the  grandson  lived.  This  antechamber,  hung  with 
a  checked  paper  of  Scotch  pattern,  held  four  walnut 
chairs,  a  small  table,  a  colored  engraving  of  the  Emperor 
after  Horace  Vernet,  also  portraits  of  Louis  XVIII., 
Charles  X.,  and  Prince  Poniatowski,  no  doubt  the  friend 
of  Monsieur  Bernard's  father-in-law.  The  window  was 
draped  with  white  calico  curtains  edged  with  red  bands 
and  fringe. 


230  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Godefroid  watched  for  Nepomucene,  and  when  the 
latter  made  his  next  trip  with  wood  signed  to  him  to 
stack  it  very  gently  in  Monsieur  Bernard's  ante- 
chamber ;  then  (with  a  perception  which  proved  some 
progress  in  our  initiate)  he  closed  the  door  of  the  inner 
lair  that  Madame  Vauthier's  slave  might  not  see  the 
old  man's  squalor. 

The  antechamber  was  just  then  encumbered  with 
three  plant-stands  filled  with  plants  ;  two  were  oblong, 
one  round,  all  three  of  a  species  of  ebony  and  of  great 
elegance  ;  even  Nepomucene  took  notice  of  them  and 
said  as  he  deposited  the  wood  :  — 

"Hey!  ain't  the}'  pretty?  Thej- must  have  cost  a 
good  bit !  " 

"Jean!  don't  make  so  much  noise!"  called  Mon- 
sieur Bernard  from  his  daughter's  room.' 

"Did  you  hear  that?"  whispered  Nepomucene  to 
Godefroid.     "He's  cracked,  for  sure,  that  old  fellow." 

"  You  don't  know  what  3'ou  may  be  at  his  age." 

"  Yes,  I  do  know,"  responded  Nepomucene,  "  I  shall 
be  in  the  sugar-bowl." 

"The  sugar-bowl?" 

"  Yes,  the}'  '11  have  made  my  bones  into  charcoal  b\' 
that  time  ;  I  often  see  the  carts  of  the  refineries  coming 
to  Montsouris  for  charcoal ;  they  tell  me  they  make 
sugar  of  it."  And  he  departed  after  another  load  of 
wood,  satisfied  with  this  philosophical  reflection. 


Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  231 

Goclcfroid  discreetl}'  withdrew  to  his  own  rooms, 
closing  Monsieur  Bernard's  door  behind  him.  Madame 
Vauthier,  who  during  this  time  had  been  preparing  her 
new  lodger's  breakfast,  now  came  up  to  serve  it,  attended 
by  Felicite.  Godefroid,  lost  in  reflection,  stared  into 
his  fire.  He  was  absorbed  in  meditation  on  this  great 
miser}^  which  contained  so  man}-  different  miseries,  and 
yet  within  which  he  could  see  the  ineffable  jo^'s  of  the 
man}'  triumphs  of  paternal  and  filial  love ;  they  were 
gems  shining  in  the  blackness  of  the  pit. 

"  What  romances,  even  those  that  are  most  famous, 
can  equal  such  realities?"  he  thought.  '' What  a  life 
it  will  be  to  relieve  the  burden  of  such  existences,  to 
seek  out  causes  and  effects  and  remed}'  them,  calming 
sorrows,  helping  good  ;  to  incarnate  one's  own  being  in 
misery ;  to  familiarize  one's  self  with  homes  like  that ; 
to  act  out  constantly  in  life  those  dramas  which  move 
us  so  in  fiction  !  I  never  imagined  that  good  could  be 
more  interesting,  more  piquant  than  vice." 

"Is  monsieur  satisfied  with  his  breakfast?"  asked 
Madame  Vauthier,  who  now,  with  Felicite's  assistance, 
brought  the  table  close  to  Godefroid. 

Godefroid  then  saw  a  cup  of  excellent  cafe  au  lait 
with  a  smoking  omelet,  fresh  butter,  and  little  red 
radishes. 

'^  Where  the  devil  did  you  get  those  radishes?  "  he 
asked. 


232  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

^'  The}"  were  given  me  bj  Monsieur  Cartier,"  an- 
swered Madame  Vauthier ;  "  and  I  make  a  present  of 
them  to  monsieur." 

""  And  what  are  3'ou  going  to  ask  me  for  such  a 
breakfast  dail}-?" 

"  Well  now,  monsieur,  be  fair,  —  I  couldn't  do  it  for 
less  than  thirty  sous." 

"Very  good,  thirty  sous  then;"  said  Godefroid ; 
*'  but  how  is  it  that  thej*  ask  me  only  forty-five  francs  a 
month  for  dinner,  close  bj'  here  at  Machillot's?  That  is 
the  same  price  you  ask  me  for  breakfast." 

"  But  what  a  difference,  monsieur,  between  preparing 
a  dinner  for  fifteen  or  twentj^  persons  and  going  out  to 
get  3'ou  just  what  you  want  for  breakfast !  See  here  ! 
there 's  a  roll,  eggs,  butter,  the  cost  of  lighting  a  fire, 
sugar,  milk,  coffee  !  — just  think  !  they  ask  you  sixteen 
sous  for  a  cup  of  coffee  alone  on  the  place  de  1  'Odeon, 
and  then  3'ou  have  to  give  a  sou  or  two  to  the  waiter. 
Here  you  have  no  trouble ;  3'ou  can  breakfast  in 
slippers." 

"  Very  well,  very  well,"  said  Godefroid. 

"Without  Madame  Cartier  who  supplies  me  with 
milk  and  eggs  and  herbs  I  could  n't  manage  it.  You 
ought  to  go  and  see  their  establishment,  monsieur. 
Ha  !  its  fine  !  They  employ  five  journeymen  gardeners, 
and  Nepomucene  goes  there  in  summer  to  draw  water 
for  them ;  they  hire  him  of  me  as  a  waterer.      They 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  233 

make  lots  of  mone}'  out  of  melons  and  strawberries. 
It  seems  monsieur  takes  quite  an  interest  in  Monsieur 
Bernard,"  continued  the  widow  in  dulcet  tones  ;  "or  be 
would  n't  be  responsible  for  his  debts.  Perhaps  he 
does  n't  know  all  that  family  owes.  There  's  the  lady 
who  keeps  the  circulating  library  on  the  place  Saint- 
Michel  ;  she  is  always  coming  here  after  thirty  francs 
they  owe  her,  —  and  she  needs  it,  God  knows  !  That 
sick  woman  in  there,  she  reads,  reads,  reads !  Two 
sous  a  volume  makes  thirtj'  francs  in  three  months." 

"  That  means  a  hundred  volumes  a  month,"  said 
Godefroid. 

*'Ah  !  there  's  the  old  man  going  now  to  fetch  a  roll 
and  cream  for  his  daughter's  tea,  —  yes,  tea  !  she  lives 
on  tea,  that  lad}'.  She  drinks  it  twice  a  da}'.  And  twice 
a  week  she  has  to  have  sweet  thing-s.  Oh !  she 's 
dainty !  The  old  man  buys  cakes  and  pates  from  the 
pastry  cook  in  the  rue  de  Buci.  He  don't  care  what 
he  spends,  if  it 's  for  her.  He  calls  her  his  daughter  ! 
It  ain't  often  that  men  of  his  age  do  for  a  daughter 
what  he  does  for  her !  He  just  kills  himself,  he  and 
Auguste  too,  for  that  woman.  .  Monsieur  is  just  like  me ; 
1  'd  give  anything  to  see  her.  Monsieur  Berton  says 
she  's  a  monster,  —  something  like  those  they  show  for 
money.  That 's  the  reason  they  've  come  to  live  here, 
in  this  lonely  quarter.  Well,  so  monsieur  thinks  of 
dining  at  Madame  Machillot's,  does  he  ?  " 


234  TJie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"  Yes,  I  think  of  making  an  arrangement  there." 
"Monsieur,  it  isn't  that  I  want  to  interfere,  but  I 
must  sa}',  comparing  food  with  food,  you  'd  do  much 
better   to   dine  in   the   rue  de  Tournon  ;  you  need  n't 
engage  by  the  month,  and  3'ou  '11  find  a  better  table." 
''  Whereabouts  in  the  rue  de  Tournon?" 
"At   the   successors   to   Madame  Giraud.       That's 
where  the  gentlemen  upstairs  go ;  thej'  are  satisfied, 
and  more  than  satisfied." 

"  Well,  I  '11  take  3'our  advice  and  dine  there  to-day." 
^' My  dear  monsieur,"  said  the  woman,  emboldened 
by  the  goOd-nature  which  Godefroid  intentionall}' 
assumed  "  tell  me  seriously,  3'ou  are  not  going  to  be  such 
a  muflf  as  to  pay  Monsieur  Bernard's  debts?  It  would 
really  trouble  me  if  you  did;  for  just  reflect,  my  kind  mon- 
sieur Godefroid,  he  's  nearly  seventy,  and  after  him,  what 
then  ?  not  a  penny  of  pension  !  How  '11  3'ou  get  paid  ? 
Young  men  are  so  imprudent !  Do  you  know  that  he 
owes  three  thousand  francs  ?  " 

"  To  whom?"  inquired  Godefroid. 
"Oh!  to  whom?  that's  not  my  affair,"  said  the 
widow,  mysteriously;  "  it  is  enough  that  he  does  owe 
them.  Between  ourselves  I  '11  tell  3'ou  this  :  somebodv 
will  soon  be  down  on  him  for  that  money,  and  he 
can't  get  a  penn3'  of  credit  now  in  the  quarter  just  on 
tlmt  account." 

"  Three  thousand  francs !  "  repeated  Godefroid  ;  "oh. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  235 

3'ou  need  n't  be  afraid  I  '11  lend  him  that.  If  I  had 
three  thousand  francs  to  dispose  of  I  should  n't  be  your 
lodger.  But  I  can't  bear  to  see  others  suffer,  and  just 
for  a  hundred  or  so  of  francs  I  sha'n't  let  my  neighbor, 
a  man  with  wliite  hair  too,  lack  for  bread  or  wood  ; 
wh}',  one  often  loses  as  much  as  that  at  cards.  But 
three  thousand  francs !  good  heavens !  what  are  3'ou 
thinking  of?  " 

Madame  Vauthier,  deceived  by  Godefroid's  apparent 
frankness,  let  a  smile  of  satisfaction  appear  on  her 
specious  face,  which  confirmed  all  her  lodger's  suspicions. 
Godefroid  was  convinced  that  the  old  woman  was  an 
accomplice  in  some  plot  that  was  brewing  against  the 
unfortunate  old  man. 

"It  is  strange,  monsieur,"  she  went  on,  "  what  fan- 
cies one  takes  into  one's  head  !  You  '11  think  me  very 
curious,  but  j'esterda}',  when  I  saw  yo\x  talking  with 
Monsieur  Bernard  I  said  to  m3self  that  3'ou  were  the 
clerk  of  some  pubUsher ;  for  this,  3'ou  know,  is  a  pub- 
lishers' quarter.  I  once  lodged  the  foreman  of  a 
printing-house  in  the  rue  de  Vaugirard,  and  his  name 
was  the  same  as  3'ours  —  " 

"  What  does  my  business  signify  to  3'OU  ? ''  interrupted 
Godefroid. 

"Oh,  pooh!  3'ou  can  tell  me,  or  you  needn't 
tell  me ;  I  shall  know  it  all  the  same,"  retorted 
Vauthier.     "  There 's  Monsieur  Bernard,  for  instance, 


236  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

for  eighteen  months  he  concealed  eveiything  from 
me,  but  on  the  nineteenth  I  discovered  that  he  been  a 
magistrate,  a  judge  somewhere  or  other,  I  forget  where, 
and  was  writing  a  book  on  law  matters.  What  did 
he  gain  b}^  concealing  it,  I  ask  3'ou.  If  he  had  told  me 
I  'd  have  said  nothing  about  it  —  so  there  !  " 

"  I  am  not  3'et  a  publisher's  clerk,  but  I  expect  to 
be,"  said  Godefroid. 

"  I  thought  so  !  '^  exclaimed  Madame  Vauthier,  turn- 
ing round  from  the  bed  she  had  been  making  as  a 
pretext  for  staying  in  the  room.  "  You  have  come 
here  to  cut  the  ground  from  under  the  feet  of —  Good  ! 
a  man  warned  is  a  man  armed." 

"  Stop !  "  cried  Godefroid,  placing  himself  between 
the  Vauthier  and  the  door.  "  Look  here,  what  interest 
have  3'Ou  in  the  matter?  " 

*'  Gracious  !  "  said  the  old  woman,  eyeing  Godefroid 
cautiousl}^  "you're  a  bold  one,  anyhow." 

She  went  to  the  door  of  the  outer  room  and  bolted  it ; 
then  she  came  back  and  sat  down  on  a  chair  beside  the 
fire. 

"  On  mj''  word  of  honor,  and  as  sure  as  my  name  is 
Vauthier,  I  took  3'ou  for  a  student  until  I  saw  you 
giving  3'our  wood  to  that  old  Bernard.  Ha  !  3-ou  're  a 
SI3'  one  ;  and  what  a  pla3'-actor  !  I  was  so  certain  3'ou 
were  a  ninny !  Look  here,  will  3'ou  guarantee  me  a 
thousand  francs?     As  sure  as  the   sun  shines,  my  old 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  237 

Barbet  and  Monsieur  Metivier  have  promised  me  five 
hundred  to  keep  mj"  e3'es  open  for  them." 

"  Thc}' !  five  hundred  francs  !  nonsense  !  "  cried 
Godefroid.  "  I  know  their  ways  ;  two  hundred  is  the 
very  most,  my  good  woman,  and  even  that  is  onl}' 
promised  ;  3'ou  can't  assign  it.  But  I  will  say  this  :  if 
you  will  put  me  in  the  way  to  do  the  business  they 
want  to  do  with  Monsieur  Bernard  I  will  pay  you  four 
hundred  francs.  Now,  then,  how  does  the  matter 
stand?" 

"They  have  advanced  fifteen  hundred  francs  upon 
the  work,"  said  Madame  Vauthier,  making  no  further 
effort  at  deception,  "  and  the  old  man  has  signed  an 
acknowledgment  for  three  thousand.  They  would  n't 
do  it  under  a  hundred  per  cent.  He  thought  he  could 
easily  pa}-  them  out  of  his  book,  but  the}'  have  arranged 
to  get  the  better  of  him  there.  It  was  they  who  sent 
Cartier  here,  and  the  other  creditors." 
-  Here  Godefroid  gave  the  old  woman  a  glance  of 
ironical  intelligence,  which  showed  her  that  he  saw 
through  the  role  she  was  playing  in  the  interest  of  her 
proprietor.  Her  words  were,  in  fact,  a  double  illumi- 
nation to  Godefroid  ;  the  curious  scene  between  himself 
and  the  gardener  was  now  explained. 

"Well,"  she  resumed,  "the}'  have  got  him  now. 
Where  is  he  to  find  three  thousand  francs?  They 
intend  to  off*er  him  five  hundred  the  day  he  puts  the 


238  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

first  volume  of  his  book  into  their  hands,  and  five 
hundred  for  each  succeeding  volume.  The  aflfair  is  n't 
in  their  names ;  they  have  put  it  into  the  hands  of 
a  publisher  whom  Barbet  set  up  on  the  quai  des 
Augustins." 

"  What,  that  little  fellow?  " 

"  Yes,  that  little  Morand,  who  was  formerly  Barbet's 
clerk.  It  seems  they  expect  a  good  bit  of  money  out  of 
the  aff'air.'* 

"  There  's  a  good  bit  to  spend,"  said  Godefroid,  with 
a  significent  grimace. 

Just  then  a  gentle  rap  was  heard  at  the  door  of  the 
outer  room.  Godefroid,  glad  of  the  interruption,  hav- 
ing got  all  he  wanted  to  know  out  of  Madame  Vauthier, 
went  to  open  it. 

''  What  is  said,  is  said,  Madame  Vauthier,"  he 
remarked  as  he  did  so.  The  visitor  was  Monsieur 
Bernard. 

"Ah!   Monsieur  Bernard,"   cried  the   widow   when- 
she  saw  him,  "I've  got  a  letter  downstairs  for  3'ou." 

The  old  man  followed  her  down  a  few  steps.  When 
they  were  out  of  hearing  from  Godefroid's  room  she 
stopped. 

' '  No,"  she  said,  "  I  have  n't  any  letter ;  I  only  wanted 
to  tell  3'ou  to  beware  of  that  3'oung  man ;  he  belongs 
to  a  publishing  house." 

"  That  explains  everything,"  thought  the  old  man. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  239 

He  went  back  to  his  neighbor  with  a  very  different 
expression  of  countenance. 

The  look  of  calm  coldness  with  which  Monsieur 
Bernard  now  entered  the  room  contrasted  so  strongly 
with  the  frank  and  cordial  air  he  had  worn  not  an 
instant  earlier  that  Godefroid  was  forcibly  struck  b}-  it. 

"Pardon  me,  monsieur,"  said  the  old  man,  stiffl}', 
*'  but  you  have  shown  me  many  favors,  and  a  benefactor 
creates  certain  rights  in  those  he  benefits." 

Godefroid  bowed. 

"I,  who  for  the  last  five  3'ears  have  endured  a  pas- 
sion like  that  of  our  Lord,  I,  who  for  thirty-six  years 
represented  social  welfare,  government,  public  ven- 
geance, have,  as  you  may  well  believe,  no  illusions  — 
no,  I  have  nothing  left  but  anguish.  Well,  monsieur,  I 
was  about  to  sa}^  that  your  little  act  in  closing  the  door 
of  my  wretched  lair,  that  simple  little  thing,  was  to  me 
the  glass  of  water  Bossuet  tells  of.  Yes,  I  did  find  in 
my  heart,  that  exhausted  heart  which  cannot  weep,  just 
as  my  withered  body  cannot  sweat,  I  did  find  a  last 
drop  of  the  elixir  which  makes  us  fancy  in  our  youth 
that  all  human  things  are  noble,  and  I  came  to  off'er 
you  my  hand ;  I  came  to  bring  you  that  celestial  flower 
of  belief  in  good  —  " 

"  Monsieur  Bernard,"  said  Godefroid,  remembering 
the  kind  old  Alain's  lessons,  "  I  have  done  nothing  to 
obtain  your  gratitude.     You  are  quite  mistaken." 


240  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

"Ah,  that  is  frankness  indeed!"  said  the  former 
magistrate.  ^'  Well,  it  pleases  me.  I  was  about  to 
reproach  3'ou ;  pardon  me,  I  now  esteem  you.  So  3'ou 
are  a  publisher,  and  3'ou  have  come  here  to  get  m}' 
work  awa}'  from  Barbet,  Metivier  and  Morand  ?  All  is 
now  explained.  You  are  making  me  advances  in  monej' 
just  as  they  did,  only  3'Ou  do  it  with  some  grace." 

"  Did  Madame  Vauthier  just  tell  you  that  I  was 
empWed  by  a  publisher?"  asked  Godefroid. 

"Yes." 

"  Well  then,  Monsieur  Bernard,  before  I  can  sa}^ 
how  much  I  can  gwe  over  what  those  other  gentlemen 
offer^  I  must  know  the  terms  on  which  you  stand  with 
them." 

"  That  is  fair,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard,  who  seemed 
rather  pleased  to  find  himself  the  object  of  a  competition 
by  which  he  might  profit.  "Do  you  know  what  my 
work  is  ?  " 

^'  No ;  I  only  know  it  is  a  good  enterprise  from  a 
business  point  of  view." 

"It  is  only  half-past  nine,  my  daughter  has  break- 
fasted, and  Cartier  will  not  bring  the  flowers  for  an  hour 
or  more  ;  we  have  time  to  talk.  Monsieur — Monsieur 
who?" 

"Godefroid." 

"  Monsieur  Godefroid,  the  work  in  question  was  pro- 
jected by  me  in  1825,  at  the  time  when  the  ministry, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  241 

being  alarmed  b}^  the  persistent  destruction  of  landed 
estates,  proposed  that  law  of  primogeniture  which  was, 
you  will  remember,  defeated.  I  had  remarked  certain 
imperfections  in  our  codes  and  in  the  fundamental 
institutions  of  France.  Our  codes  have  often  been  the 
subject  of  important  works,  but  those  works  were  all 
from  the  point  of  view  of  jurisprudence.  No  one  had 
even  ventured  to  consider  the  work  of  the  Revolution,  or 
(if  you  prefer  it)  of  Napoleon,  as  a  whole  ;  no  one  had 
studied  the  spirit  of  those  laws,  and  judged  them  in 
their  application.  That  is  the  main  purpose  of  my 
work ;  it  is  entitled,  provisionally,  '  The  Spirit  of  the 
New  Laws  ;  '  it  includes  organic  laws  as  well  as  codes, 
all  codes  ;  for  we  have  manj'^  more  than  five  codes. 
Consequently',  m}'  work  is  in  several  volumes ;  six  in 
all,  the  last  being  a  volume  of  citations,  notes,  and 
references.  It  will  take  me  now  about  three  months  to 
finish  it.  The  proprietor  of  this  house,  a  former  pub- 
lisher, of  whom  I  made  a  few  inquiries,  perceived, 
scented  I  ma}^  sa}',  the  chance  of  a  speculation.  I,  in 
the  first  instance,  thought  only  of  doing  a  service  to  my 
country,  and  not  of  my  own  profit.  Well,  this  Barbet 
has  circumvented  me.  You  will  ask  me  how  it  was 
possible  for  a  publisher  to  get  the  better  of  a  magistrate, 
a  man  who  knows  the  laws.  Well,  it  was  in  this  way : 
You  know  my  history ;  Barbet  is  a  usurer ;  he  has  the 
keen  glance  and  the  shrewd  action  of  that  breed  of  men. 

16 


242  Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

His  money  was  always  at  my  heels  to  help  me  over  my 
worst  needs.  Strange  to  say,  on  the  days  I  was  most 
defenceless  against  despair  he  happened  to  appear." 

"  No,  no,  my  dear  Monsieur  Bernard,"  said  Gode- 
froid,  ''he  had  a  spy  in  Madame  Vauthier ;  she  told 
him  when  you  needed  money.  But  the  terms,  the 
conditions?     Tell  them  to  me  briefl}'." 

"  He  has  lent  me  from  time  to  time  fifteen  hundred 
francs,  for  which  I  have  signed  three  notes  of  a  thousand 
francs  each,  and  those  notes  are  secured  by  a  sort  of 
mortgage  on  the  cop3Tight  of  my  book,  so  that  I  cannot 
sell  mj^  book  unless  I  pay  off  those  notes,  and  the  notes 
are  now  protested,  —  he  has  taken  the  matter  into  court 
and  obtained  a  judgment  against  me.  Such  are  the 
complications  of  poverty  !  At  the  lowest  valuation,  the 
first  edition  of  my  great  work,  a  work  representing  ten 
years'  toil  and  thirtj'-six  years'  experience,  is  fully  worth 
ten  thousand  francs.  Well,  ten  days  ago,  Morand  pro- 
posed to  give  me  three  thousand  francs  and  m}'  notes 
cancelled  for  the  entire  rights  in  perpetuity.  Now  as  it 
is  not  possible  for  me  to  refund  the  amount  of  my  notes 
and  interest,  namely,  three  thousand  two  hundred  and 
fort}'  francs,  I  must,  —  unless  you  intend  to  step  between 
those  usurers  and  me,  —  I  must  yield  to  them.  The}- 
are  not  content  with  my  word  of  honor;  they  first 
obtained  the  notes,  then  they  had  them  protested,  and 
now  I  am  threatened  with  arrest  for  debt.     If  I  could 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  243 

manage  to  pa}^  them  back,  those  scoundrels  would  have 
doubled  their  money.  If  I  accept  their  terras  they  will 
make  a  fortune  out  of  my  book  and  I  shall  get  almost 
nothing  ;  one  of  them  is  a  paper-maker,  and  God  knows 
how  they  may  keep  down  the  costs  of  publication. 
They  will  have  m}'  name,  and  that  alone  will  sell  ten 
thousand  copies  for  them." 

'•But,  monsieur,  how  could  you,  a  former  magis- 
trate !  —  " 

"How  could  I  help  it?  Not  a  friend,  not  a  claim 
that  I  could  make  !  And  yet  I  saved  many  heads,  if  I 
made  some  fall !  And,  then,  my  daughter,  my  daugh- 
ter! whose  nurse  I  am,  whose  companion  I  must  be; 
so  that  I  can  work  but  a  few  hours  snatched  from 
sleep.  Ah,  young  man !  none  but  the  wretched  can 
judge  the  wretched !  Sometimes  I  think  I  used  to  be 
too  stern  to  misery." 

"  Monsieur,  I  do  not  ask  3-our  name.  I  cannot  pro- 
vide three  thousand  francs,  especialh'  if  I  pay  Halper- 
sohn  and  your  lesser  debts  ;  but  I  will  save  you  if  you 
will  promise  me  not  to  part  with  your  book  without 
letting  me  know.  It  is  impossible  for  me  to  arrange  a 
matter  as  important  as  this  without  consulting  others. 
My  backers  are  powerful,  and  I  can  promise  you  suc- 
cess if  you,  in  return,  will  promise  me  absolute  secrecy, 
even  to  your  children,  and  keep  3'our  promise." 

"  The  only  success  I  care  for  is  the  recovery  of  my 


244  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

poor  Vanda ;  for  such  sufferings  as  hers  extinguish 
ever}"  other  feeling  in  a  father's  heart.  As  for  fame, 
what  is  that  to  one  who  sees  an  open  grave  before 
him?" 

''  I  will  come  and  see  you  this  evening;  they  expect 
Halpersohn  at  any  time,  and  I  shall  go  there  da}^  after 
day  till  I  find  him." 

"Ah,  monsieur!  if  3'ou  should  be  the  cause  of  my 
daugliter's  recover}',  I  would  like  —  yes,  I  would  like 
to  give  you  my  work !  " 

"Monsieur,"  said  Godefroid,  "I  am  not  a  pub- 
hsher." 

The  old  man  started  with  surprise. 

"I  let  that  old  Vauthier  think  so  in  order  to  discover 
the  traps  they  were  laying  for  you." 

' '  Then  who  are  you  ?  " 

"  Godefroid,"  replied  the  initiate;  "and  since  you 
allow  me  to  offer  you  enough  to  make  the  pot  boil,  you 
can  call  me,  if  you  like,  Godefroid  de  Bouillon." 

The  old  man  was  far  too  moved  to  laugh  at  a  joke. 
He  held  out  his  hand  to  Godefroid,  and  pressed  that 
which  the  young  man  gave  him  in  return. 

"You  wish  to  keep  your  incognito?"  he  said,  look- 
ing at  Godefroid  sadly,  with  some  uneasiness. 

"If  you  will  allow  it" 

"  Well,  as  you  will.  Come  to-night,  and  you  shall 
see  my  daughter  if  her  condition  permits." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  245 

This  was  evidently  a  great  concession  in  the  eyes  of 
the  poor  father,  and  he  had  the  satisfaction  of  seeing, 
by  the  look  on  Godefroid's  face,  that  it  was  understood. 

An  hour  later,  Cartier  returned  with  a  number  of 
beautiful  flowering  plants,  which  he  placed  himself  in 
the  jardinieres,  covering  them  with  fresh  moss.  Gode- 
froid  paid  his  bill ;  also  that  of  the  circulating  library-, 
which  was  brought  soon  after.  Books  and  flowers  !  — 
these  were  the  daily  bread  of  this  poor  invalid,  this 
tortured  creature,  who  was  satisfied  with  so  little. 

As  he  thought  of  this  family,  coiled  b}^  misfortunes 
like  that  of  the  Laocoon  (sublime  image  of  so  many 
lives),  Godefroid,  who  was  now  on  his  way  on  foot 
to  the  rue  Marbeuf,  was  conscious  in  his  heart  of 
more  curiosity  than  benevolence.  This  sick  woman, 
surrounded  by  luxury  in  the  midst  of  such  direful 
poverty,  made  him  forget  the  horrible  details  of  the 
strangest  of  all  nervous  disorders,  which  is  happily 
rare,  though  recorded  by  a  few  historians.  One  of  our 
most  gossiping  chroniclers,  Tallemant  des  E-eaux,  cites 
an  instance  of  it.  The  mind  instinctively  pictures  a 
woman  as  being  elegant  in  the  midst  of  her  worst 
suff'erings ;  and  Godefroid  let  himself  dwell  on  the 
pleasure  of  entering  that  chamber  where  none  but  the 
father,  son,  and  doctor  had  been  admitted  for  six  years. 
Nevertheless,  he  ended  bj'  blaming  himself  for  his  curi- 
osity.    He  even  felt  that  the  sentiment,  natural  as  it 


246  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

was,  would  cease  as  he  went  on  exercising  his  benefi- 
cent ministry,  from  the  mere  fact  of  seeing  more  dis- 
tressed homes  and  many  sorrows. 

Such  agents  do  reach  in  time  a  divine  serenity  which 
nothing  surprises  or  confounds ;  just  as  in  love  we 
come  to  the  divine  quietude  of  that  emotion,  sure  of 
its  strength,  sure  of  its  lastingness,  through  our  con- 
stant experience  of  its  pains  and  sweetnesses. 

Godefroid  was  told  that  Halpersohn  had  returned 
during  the  niglit,  but  had  been  obliged  to  go  out  at  once 
to  visit  patients  who  were  awaiting  him.  The  porter  told 
Godefroid  to  come  the  next  daj'  before  nine  o'clock  in 
the  morning. 

Remembering  Monsieur  Alain's  injunction  to  parsi- 
mony in  his  personal  expenses,  Godefroid  dined  for 
twenty-five  sous  in  the  rue  de  Tournon,  and  was  re- 
warded for  his  abnegation  \)y  finding  himself  in  the 
midst  of  compositors  and  pressmen.  He  heard  a  dis- 
cussion on  costs  of  manufacturing,  in  which  he  took 
part,  and  learned  that  an  edition  of  one  thousand  copies 
of  an  octavo  volume  of  forty  sheets  did  not  cost  more 
than  thirty  sous  a  copy,  in  the  best  style  of  printing. 
He  resolved  to  ascertain  the  price  at  which  publishers 
of  law  books  sold  their  volumes,  so  as  to  be  prepared 
for  a  discussion  with  the  men  who  held  Monsieur  Ber- 
nard in  their  clutches  if  he  should  have  to  meet  them. 

Towards  seven   in   the   evonino;  he  returned  to  the 


Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  247 

boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse  by  way  of  the  rue  de 
Vaugirard  and  the  rue  de  I'Ouest,  and  he  saw  then  how 
deserted  the  quarter  was,  for  he  met  no  one.  It  is  true 
that  the  cold  was  rigorous,  and  the  snow  fell  in  great 
flakes,  the  wheels  of  the  carriages  making  no  noise 
upon  the  pavements. 

"  Ah,  here  3'ou  are,  monsieur  !  "  said  Madame  Vau- 
thier.  "  If  I  had  known  you  were  coming  home  so 
early  I  would  have  made  your  fire." 

"  I  don't  want  one,"  said  Godefroid,  seeing  that  the 
widow  followed  him.  "  I  shall  spend  the  evening  in 
Monsieur  Bernard's  apartment." 

''  Well,  well !  you  must  be  his  cousin,  if  you  are  hand 
and  glove  like  that !  Perhaps  monsieur  will  finish  now 
the  little  conversation  we  began." 

^'  Ah,  yes  !  —  about  that  four  hundred  francs.  Look 
here,  m}'  good  Madame  Vauthier,  you  are  tr3'ing  to  see 
which  wa}'  the  cat  jumps,  and  3'ou'll  tumble  yourself 
between  two  stools.  As  for  me,  you  have  betrayed 
me,  and  made  me  miss  the  whole  affair." 

"  Now,  don't  think  that,  my  dear  monsieur.  To- 
morrow, while  you  breakfast  —  " 

"  To-morrow  I  shall  not  breakfast  here.  I  am  going 
out,  like  3'our  authors,  at  cock  crow.'' 

Godefroid's  antecedents,  his  life  as  a  man  of  the 
world  and  a  journalist,  served  him  in  this,  that  he  felt 
quite  sure,  unless  he  took  tliis  tone,  that  Barbet's  sp3' 


248  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

would  warn  the  old  publisher  of  danger,  and  probably 
lead  to  active  measures  under  which  Monsieur  Bernard 
would  before  long  be  arrested ;  whereas,  if  he  left  the 
trio  of  harpies  to  suppose  that  their  scheme  ran  no  risk 
of  defeat,  they  would  keep  quiet. 

But  Godefroid  did  not  3'et  know  Parisian  human 
nature  when  embodied  in  a  Vauthier.  That  woman 
resolved  to  have  Godefroid's  mone}'  and  Barbet's  too. 
She  instantly  ran  off  to  her  proprietor,  while  Godefroid 
changed  his  clothes  in  order  to  present  himself  properly 
before  the  daughter  of  Monsieur  Bernard. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  249 


XV. 

AN    EVENING   WITH    VANDA. 

Eight  o'clock  was  striking  from  the  convent  of  the 
Visitation,  the  clock  of  the  quarter,  when  the  inquisi- 
tive Godefroid  tapped  gentl}'  at  his  neighbor's  door. 
Auguste  opened  it.  As  it  happened  to  be  a  Saturda}-, 
the  young  lad  had  his  evening  to  himself.  Godefroid 
beheld  him  in  a  little  sack-coat  of  black  velvet,  a  blue 
silk  cravat,  and  black  trousers.  But  his  surprise  at  the 
youth's  appearance,  so  different  from  that  of  his  outside 
life,  ceased  as  soon  as  he  had  entered  the  invalid's 
chamber.  He  then  understood  the  reason  why  both 
father  and  son  were  well  dressed. 

For  a  moment  the  contrast  between  the  squalor  of 
the  other  rooms,  as  he  had  seen  them  that  morning, 
and  the  luxury  of  this  chamber,  was  so  great  that 
Godefroid  was  dazzled,  though  habituated  for  j'ears 
to  the  luxury  and  elegance  procured  by  wealth. 

The  walls  of  the  room  were  hung  with  yellow  silk, 
relieved  by  twisted  fringes  of  a  bright  green,  giving  a 
gay  and  cheerful  aspect  to  the  chamber,  the  cold  tiled 
floor  of  which  was  hidden  by  a  moquette  carpet  with 


250  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

a,  white  ground  strewn  with  flowers.  The  windows, 
draped  by  handsome  curtains  hned  with  white  silk, 
were  like  conservatories,  so  full  were  they  of  plants  in 
flower.  The  blinds  were  lowered,  which  prevented  this 
luxur3%  so  rare  in  that  quarter  of  the  town,  from  being 
seen  from  the  street.  The  woodwork  was  painted  in 
white  enamel,  touched  up,  here  and  there,  hy  a  few 
gold  lines. 

At  the  door  was  a  heavy  portiere,  embroidered  by 
hand  with  fantastic  foliage  on  a  yellow  ground,  so  thick 
that  all  sounds  from  without  were  stifled.  This  mag- 
nificent curtain  was  made  by  the  sick  woman  herself, 
who  could  work,  when  she  had  the  use  of  her  hands, 
like  a  fairy. 

At  the  farther  end  of  the  room,  and  opposite  to  the 
door,  was  the  fireplace,  with  a  green  velvet  mantel- 
shelf, on  which  a  few  extremely  elegant  ornaments, 
the  last  relics  of  the  opulence  of  two  families,  were 
arranged.  These  consisted  of  a  curious  clock,  in  the 
shape  of  an  elephant  supporting  on  its  back  a  porcelain 
tower  which  was  filled  with  the  choicest  flowers ; 
two  candelabra  in  the  same  style,  and  several  precious 
Chinese  treasures.  The  fender,  andirons,  tongs,  and 
shovel  were  all  of  the  handsomest  description. 

The  largest  of  the  flower-stands  was  placed  in  the 
middle  of  the  room,  and  above  it  hung  a  porcelain 
ciiandelier  designed  with  wreaths  of  flowers. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  251 

The  bed  on  which  the  old  man's  daughter  lay  was 
one  of  those  beautiful  white  and  gold  carved  bedsteads 
such  as  were  made  in  the  Louis  XV.  period.  B}-  the 
sick  woman's  pillow  was  a  ver}'  pretty  marquetrj'  table, 
on  which  were  the  various  articles  necessar}^  to  this 
bedridden  life.  Against  the  wall  was  a  bracket  lamp 
witli  two  branches,  either  of  which  could  be  moved 
forward  or  back  by  a  mere  touch  of  the  hand.  A  small 
table,  adapted  to  the  use  of  the  invalid,  extended  in 
front  of  her.  The  bed,  covered  with  a  beautiful  coun- 
terpane, and  draped  with  curtains  held  back  bj-  cords, 
was  heaped  with  books,  a  work-basket,  and  articles  of 
embroidery,  beneath  which  Godefroid  would  scarcely 
have  distinguished  the  sick  woman  herself  had  it  not 
been  for  the  light  of  the  bracket  lamps. 

There  was  nothing  of  her  to  be  seen  but  a  face  of 
extreme  whiteness,  browned  around  the  e3'es  by  suffer- 
ing, in  which  shone  eyes  of  fire,  its  principal  adornment 
being  a  magnificent  mass  of  black  hair,  the  numerous 
heavy  curls  of  which,  carefully  arranged,  showed  that 
the  dressing  of  those  beautiful  locks  occupied  a  good 
part  of  the  invalid's  morning.  This  supposition  was 
further  strengthened  by  the  portable  mirror  which  lay 
on  the  bed. 

No  modern  arrangement  for  comfort  was  lacking. 
Even  a  few  knick-knacks,  which  amused  poor  Vanda, 
proved  that  the  father's  love  was  almost  fanatical. 


252  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

The  old  man  rose  from  an  elegant  Louis  XV.  sofa  in 
white  and  gold,  covered  with  tapestr}^,  and  advanced 
to  Godefroid,  who  would  certainly  not  have  recognized 
him  elsewhere  ;  for  that  cold,  stern  face  now  wore  the 
ga}'  expression  peculiar  to  old  men  of  the  world,  who 
retain  the  manners  and  apparent  frivolity  of  the  no- 
bility about  a  court.  His  wadded  violet  gown  was  in 
keeping  with  this  luxur}^  and  he  took  snuff  from  a  gold 
box  studded  with  diamonds. 

''Here,  m}-  dear  daughter,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard, 
taking  Godefroid  b}-  the  hand,  ''  is  the  neighbor  of 
whom  I  told  you." 

He  signed  to  his  grandson  to  draw  up  one  of  two 
armchairs,  similar  in  style  to  the  sofa,  which  stood 
beside  the  fireplace. 

"Monsieur's  name  is  Godefroid,  and  he  is  full  of 
friendly  kindness  for  us." 

Vanda  made  a  motion  with  her  head  in  answer  to 
Godefroid's  low  bow ;  b}'  the  very  way  in  which  her 
neck  bent  and  then  recovered  itself,  Godefroid  saw  that 
the  whole  ph3'sical  life  of  the  invalid  was  in  her  head. 
The  thin  arms  and  flaccid  hands  laj-  on  the  fine,  white 
linen  of  the  sheets,  like  things  not  connected  with  the 
bod}',  which,  indeed,  seemed  to  fill  no  place  at  all  in 
the  bed.  The  articles  necessary  for  a  sick  person  were 
on  shelves  standing  behind  the  bedstead,  and  were 
concealed  hy  a  drawn  curtain. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  253 

"You  are  the  first  person,  monsieur,  —  except  my 
doctors,  who  are  not  men  to  me,  —  whom  I  have  seen 
for  six  years ;  therefore  you  cannot  doubt  the  interest 
you  have  excited  in  m}^  mind,  since  m}'  father  told  me 
this  morning  that  you  were  to  pay  me  a  visit  —  interest ! 
no,  it  was  an  unconquerable  curiositj',  like  that  of  our 
mother  Eve.  M}'  father,  who  is  so  good  to  me,  and 
my  son,  whom  I  love  so  much,  do  certainly  suffice  to  fill 
the  desert  of  a  soul  which  is  almost  without  a  bod}' ; 
but  after  all,  that  soul  is  still  a  woman's  ;  I  feel  it  in  the 
childish  joy  the  thought  of  3'our  visit  has  brought  me. 
You  will  do  me  the  pleasure  to  take  a  cup  of  tea  with 
us,  I  hope?  " 

*'  Monsieur  has  promised  to  pass  the  evening  here," 
said  the  old  man,  with  the  aii*  of  a  millionnaire  receiv- 
ing a  guest. 

Auguste,  sitting  on  a  tapestried  chair  at  a  marquetry 
table  with  brass  trimmings,  was  reading  a  book  by  the 
light  of  the  candelabra  on  the  chimne}'  piece. 

"  Auguste,  m}^  dear,"  said  his  mother,  "tell  Jean  to 
serve  tea  in  an  hour.  Would  3'ou  believe  it  monsieur," 
she  added,  "  that  for  six  years  I  have  been  waited  upon 
whoUv  b}^  my  father  and  son,  and  now,  I  really  think, 
I  could  bear  no  other  attendance.  If  they  were  to  fail 
me  1  should  die.  M3'  father  will  not  even  allow  Jean, 
a  poor  Norman  who  has  served  us  for  thirt}'  years,  to 
come  into  my  room." 


254  The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation, 

"  I  should  think  not !  "  said  the  old  man,  quickl}' ; 
"  monsieur  knows  him  ;  he  chops  wood  and  brings  it 
in,  and  cooks;  he  wears  dirt}"  aprons,  and  would  soon 
spoil  all  this  elegance  in  which  you  take  such  pleasure 
—  this  room  is  really  the  whole  of  life  to  my  poor 
daughter,  monsieur." 

'^  Ah  !  madame,  3^our  father  is  quite  right." 

"  But  why?  "  she  said  ;  "  if  Jean  did  any  damage  to 
my  room  my  father  would  restore  it.'' 

"  Yes,  my  child  ;  but  remember  you  could  not  leave 
it ;  you  don't  know  what  Parisian  tradesmen  are  ;  they 
would  take  three  months  to  renovate  3'our  room.  Let 
Jean  take  care  of  it?  no,  indeed  !  how  can  3'ou  think  of 
it?  Auguste  and  I  take  such  precautions  that  we  allow 
no  dust,  and  so  avoid  all  sweeping." 

"It  is  a  matter  of  health,  not  economy,"  said 
Godefroid  ;  "  your  father  is  right." 

"I  am  not  complaining,"  said  Vanda,  in  a  caressing 
voice. 

That  voice  was  a  concert  of  delightful  sounds.  Soul, 
motion,  life  itself  were  concentrated  in  the  glance  and 
in  the  voice  of  this  woman  ;  for  Vanda  had  succeeded 
by  stud}',  for  wliich  time  was  certainly*  not  lacking  to 
her,  in  conquering  the  difficult}'  produced  by  the  loss  of 
her  teeth. 

"  I  have  much  to  make  me  happ}'  in  the  midst  of  my 
sufferings,  monsieur,"  she  said;  "  and  certainly  ample 


Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  255 

means  are  a  great  help  in  bearing  trouble.  If  we  bad 
been  poor  I  should  have  died  eighteen  3'ears  ago,  but  I 
still  live.  Oh,  yes,  I  have  many  enjo^'ments,  and  they 
are  all  the  greater  because  they  are  perpetually  won 
from  death.  I  am  afraid  you  will  think  me  quite 
garrulous,"  she  added,  smiling. 

"  Madame,  I  should  like  to  listen  to  you  forever," 
replied  Godefroid ;  "I  have  never  heard  a  voice  that 
was  comparable  to  3'ours ;  it  is  music ;  Rubini  is  not 
more  enchanting." 

"  Don't  speak  of  Rubini  or  the  opera,"  said  the  old 
man,  sadl}'.  "■  That  is  a  pleasure  that,  rich  as  I  am,  I 
cannot  give  to  mj'  daughter.  She  was  once  a  great 
musician,  and  the  opera  was  her  greatest  pleasure." 

"Forgive  me,"  said  Godefroid. 

"  You  will  soon  get  accustomed  to  us,"  said  the  old 
man. 

"  Yes,  and  this  is  the  process,"  said  the  sick  woman, 
laughing;  "when  they've  cried  '  x)uss,  puss,  puss,' 
often  enough  3'ou  '11  learn  the  puss-in-the-corner  of  our 
conversations." 

Godefroid  gave  a  rapid  glance  at  Monsieur  Bernard, 
who,  seeing  the  tears  in  the  e3'es  of  his  new  neighbor, 
seemed  to  be  makinor  him  a  sign  not  to  undo  the  results 
of  the  self-command  he  and  his  grandson  had  practised 
for  so  many  3'ears. 

This  sublime  and  perpetual  imposture,  proved  by  the 


256  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

complete  illusion  of  the  sick  woman,  produced  on  Gode- 
froid's  mind  the  impression  of  an  Alpine  precipice  down 
which  two  chamois  hunters  picked  their  wa3\  The 
magnificent  gold  snuft-box  enriched  with  diamonds 
with  which  the  old  man  carelessly  toj^ed  as  he  sat  by 
his  daughter's  bedside  was  like  the  stroke  of  genius 
which  in  the  work  of  a  great  man  elicits  a  cry  of 
admiration.  Godefroid  looked  at  that  snuff-box,  won- 
dering it  had  not  been  sold  or  found  its  wa3'  to  the 
mont-de-piete. 

"  This  evening,  Monsieur  Godefroid,  my  daughter 
received  the  announcement  of  3'our  visit  with  such  ex- 
citement that  all  the  curious  S3'mptoms  of  her  malady 
which  have  troubled  us  ver}^  much  for  the  last  twelve 
daj's  have  entirely  disappeared.  You  can  fanc^'  how 
grateful  I  am  to  3'ou."  • 

"  And  I,  too,"  said  the  invalid  in  her  caressing  tones, 
drooping  her  head  with  a  motion  full  of  coquetry. 
"  Monsieur  is  to  me  a  deputy  from  the  world.  Since  I 
was  twent}'  3'ears  old,  monsieur,  I  have  not  seen  a 
salon,  or  a  part3^  or  a  ball.  And  I  must  tell  3'ou  that 
I  love  dancing,  and  adore  the  theatre,  especiall3^  the 
opera.  I  imagine  ever3'thing  by  thought !  I  read  a 
great  deal ;  and  then  m3"  father,  who  goes  into  society 
tells  me  about  social  events." 

Godefroid  made  an  involuntar3'  movement  as  if  to 
kneel  at  the  old  man's  feet. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  257 

"  Yes,  when  he  goes  to  the  opera,  and  he  often  goes, 
he  describes  to  me  the  singing  and  tells  me  about  the 
dresses  of  the  ladies.  Oh  I  1  would  I  were  cured  for 
tlie  sake  of  my  father,  who  lives  solely  for  me  as  I  live 
b}'-  him  and  for  him,  and  then  for  my  son,  to  whom  I 
would  fain  be  a  real  mother.  Ah !  monsieur,  what 
blessed  beings  my  old  father  and  my  good  son  are ! 
I  should  also  like  to  recover  so  as  to  hear  Lablache, 
Eubini,  Tamburini,  Grisi,  and  '  I  Puritani.'     But  —  " 

"Come,  come,  my  child,  be  calm!  If  we  talk 
music  we  are  lost !  "  said  the  old  man,  smiling. 

That  smile,  which  rejuvenated  his  face,  was  evidently 
a  perpetual  deception  to  the  sick  woman. 

"  Yes,  yes,  I  '11  be  good,"  said  Vanda,  with  a  petulant 
little  air;  '•  but  when  will  30U  give  me  an  accordion?" 

The  portable  instrument  then  called  by  that  name 
had  just  been  invented.  It  could,  if  desired,  be 
placed  at  the  edge  of  a  bedstead,  and  onl}-  needed  the 
pressure  of  a  foot  to  give  out  the  sounds  of  an  organ. 
This  instrument,  in  its  highest  development,  was  equal 
to  a  piano  ;  but  the  cost  of  it  was  three  hundred  francs. 
Vanda,  who  read  the  newspapers  and  reviews,  knew 
of  the  existence  of  the  instrument,  and  had  wished  for 
one  for  the  last  two  months. 

''  Yes  madame,  3'ou  shall  have  one,"  said  Godefroid, 
after  exchanging  a  look  with  the  old  man,  "  A  friend  of 
mine  who  is  just  starting  for  Algiers  has  a  fine  instru- 

17 


258  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

mcnt  and  I  will  borrow  it  of  him.  Before  buying,  j'ou 
had  better  try  one.  It  is  possible  that  the  powerful, 
vibrating  tones  maj^  be  too  much  for  3'ou." 

*' Can  I  have  it  to-morrow?"  she  said,  with  the 
wilfulness  of  a  Creole. 

'^To-morrow?''  said   Monsieur  Bernard,   ''that   is> 
soon  ;    besides,  to-morrow  is  Sunda3\" 

''  Ah  !  —  "  she  exclaimed,  looking  at  Godefroid,  who 
fancied  he  could  see  a  soul  hovering  in  the  air  as  he 
admired  the  ubiquity  of  Vanda's  glances. 

Until  then,  Godefroid  had  never  known  the  power  of 
voice  and  eyes  when  the  whole  of  life  is  put  into  them. 
The  glance  was  no  longer  a  glance,  a  look,  it  was 
a  flame,  or  rather,  a  divine  incandescence,  a  radiance, 
communicating  life  and  mind,  —  it  was  thought  made 
visible.  The  voice,  with  its  thousand  intonations,  took 
the  place  of  motions,  gestures,  attitudes.  The  vari- 
ations of  the  complexion,  changing  color  like  the 
famous  chameleon,  made  the  illusion,  perhaps  we  should 
sa}'  the  mirage,  complete.  That  suffering  head  lying 
on  the  white  pillow  edged  with  laces  was  a  whole 
person  in  itself. 

Never  in  his  life  had  Godefroid  seen  so  wonderful 
a  sight ;  he  could  scarcely  control  his  emotions. 
Another  wonder,  for  all  was  wondrous  in  this  scene, 
so  full  of  horror  and  yet  of  poesj',  was  that  in  those  who 
saw  it  soul  alone  existed.     This  atmosphere,  filled  with 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  259 

mental  emotions  onl}^  had  a  celestial  influence.  Those 
present  felt  their  bodies  as  little  as  the  sick  woman  felt 
hers.  The^^  were  all  mind.  As  Godefroid  contemplated 
tliat  frail  fragment  of  woman  he  forgot  the  surrounding 
elesancies  of  the  room,  and  fancied  himself  beneath  the 
open  heavens.  It  was  not  until  half  an  hour  had 
passed  that  he  came  back  to  his  sense  of  things  about 
him  ;  he  then  noticed  a  fine  picture,  which  the  invalid 
asked  him  to  examine,  saying  it  was  by  Gericault. 

"  Gericault,"  she  told  him,  "came  from  Rouen; 
his  famil}^  were  under  certain  obligations  to  m}'  father, 
who  was  president  of  the  court,  and  he  showed  his 
gratitude  b}'  painting  that  portrait  of  me  when  I  was 
a  girl  of  sixteen." 

''It  is  a  beautiful  picture,"  said  Godefroid;  "and 
quite  unknown  to  those  who  are  in  search  of  the  rare 
works  of  that  master." 

"To  me  it  is  merely  an  object  of  affection,"  replied 
Vanda  ;  "  I  live  in  m}'  heart  onl}'  —  and  it  is  a  beautiful 
life,"  she  added,  casting  a  look  at  her  father  in  which 
she  seemed  to  put  her  very  soul.  "  Ah!  monsieur,  if 
you  only  knew  what  m}''  father  reall}'  is  !  Who  would 
believe  that  the  stern  and  loft}'  magistrate  to  whom  the 
Emperor  was  under  such  obligations  that  he  gave  him 
that  snuff-box,  and  on  whom  Charles  X.  bestowed  as  a 
reward  that  Sevres  tea-set  which  yoxx  see  behind  3'ou, 
who  would  suppose  that  that  rigid  supporter  of  power 


260  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

and  law,  that  learned  jurist,  should  have  within  his 
heart  of  rock  the  heart  of  a  mother,  too  ?  Oh  !  papa, 
papa  !  kiss  me,  kiss  me  !  come  !  " 

The  old  man  rose,  leaned  over  the  bed  and  kissed  the 
broad  poetic  forehead  of  his  daughter,  whose  passionate 
excitements  did  not  alwa3S  take  the  turn  of  this  tem- 
pest of  affection.  Then  he  walked  about  the  room  ; 
his  slippers,  embroidered  b3'  his  daughter,  making  no 
noise. 

"  What  are  3'our  occupations?  "  said  Vanda  to  Gode- 
froid,  after  a  pause. 

"  Madame,  I  am  emplo3'ed  b}^  pious  persons  to  help 
the  unfortunate." 

'^Ah!  what  a  noble  mission,  monsieur!"  she  said. 
"Do  3'ou  know  the  thought  of  devoting  m3'self  to  that 
ver3^  work  has  often  come  to  me  ?  but  ah !  what  ideas 
do  not  come  to  me  ?  "  she  added,  with  a  motion  of  her 
head.  "  Suffering  is  like  a  torch  which  lights  up  life. 
If  I  were  ever  to  recover  health  —  " 

"You  should  amuse  3'ourself,  m)'  child,"  said  her 
father. 

"  Oh  3'es  !  "  she  said  ;  "I  have  the  desire,  but  should 
I  then  have  the  facult3'?  My  son  will  be,  I  hope  a 
magistrate,  worthy  of  his  two  grandfathers,  and  he  will 
leave  me.  What  should  I  do  then?  If  God  restores 
me  to  life  I  will  dedicate  that  life  to  Him  —  oh  !  after 
giving  3'ou  all  3'ou  need  of  it,"  she  cried,  looking  ten- 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  261 

derly  at  her  father  and  son.  "  There  are  moments,  my 
dear  father,  when  the  ideas  of  Monsieur  de  Maistre  work 
within  me  powerfull}',  and  I  fancj^  that  I  am  expiating 
something." 

"See  what  it  is  to  read  too  much!"  said  the  old 
man,  evidently  troubled. 

"  That  brave  Polish  general,  mj''  great  grandfather, 
took  part,  though  very  innocentlj',  in  the  partition  of 
Poland." 

"  Well,  well !  now  it  is  Poland !  "  said  Monsieur 
Bernard. 

"  How  can  I  help  it,  papa?  my  sufferings  are  infer- 
nal ;  the}'  give  me  a  horror  of  life,  tlie}'  disgust  me  with 
mj'self.  Well,  I  ask  3'ou,  have  I  done  anything  to 
deserve  them?  Such  diseases  are  not  a  mere  derange- 
ment of  health,  they  are  caused  by  a  perverted  organiz- 
ation and  —  " 

"  Sing  that  national  air  your  poor  mother  used  to 
sing ;  Monsieur  Godefroid  wants  to  hear  it  ;  I  have 
told  him  about  your  voice,"  said  the  old  man,  endeavor- 
ing to  distract  her  mind  from  the  current  of  such 
thoughts. 

Vanda  began,  in  a  low  and  tender  voice,  to  sing  a 
Polish  sons:  which  held  Godefroid  dumb  with  admiration 
and  also  with  sadness.  This  melod}^,  which  greatl}' 
resembles  the  long  drawn  out  melancholy  airs  of  Brittan}', 
is  one  of  those  poems   which  ^■ibrate  in  the  heart  long 


262  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

after  the  ear  has  heard  them.  As  he  listened,  Godefroid 
looked  at  Vanda,  but  he  could  not  endure  the  ecstatic 
glance  of  that  fragment  of  a  woman,  partially  insane, 
and  his  e^'es  wandered  to  two  cords  which  hung  one  on 
each  side  of  the  canop}'  of  the  bed. 

"  Ah  ha !  "  laughed  Vanda,  noticing  his  look,  "do 
you  want  to  know  what  those  cords  are  for  ?  " 

"Vanda!"  said  her  father,  hastih',  "  calm  yourself, 
my  daughter.  See  !  here  comes  tea.  That,  monsieur," 
he  continued,  turning  to  Godefroid,  "  is  rather  a  costl}^ 
affair.  My  daughter  cannot  rise,  and  therefore  it  is 
difficult  to  change  her  sheets.  Those  cords  are  fas- 
tened to  pulleys ;  by  slipping  a  square  of  leather 
beneath  her  and  drawing  it  up  by  the  four  corners 
with  these  puller's,  we  are  able  to  make  her  bed  without 
fatigue  to  her  or  to  ourselves." 

*'  They  swing  me  !  "  cried  Vanda,  gayl}^ 

Happil}",  Auguste  now  came  in  with  a  teapot,  which 
he  placed  on  a  table,  together  with  the  Sevres  tea-set ; 
then  he  brought  cakes  and  sandwiches  and  cream.  This 
sight  diverted  his  mother's  mind  from  the  nervous  crisis 
which  seemed  to  threaten  her. 

"  See,  Vanda,  here  is  Nathan's  new  novel.  If  3'ou 
wake  in  the  night  3'ou  will  have  something  to  read." 

"  Oh  !  delightful !  '  La  Perle  de  Dol ; '  it  must  be  a 
love-stor}',  —  Auguste,  I  have  something  to  tell  3'ou ! 
I'm  to  have  an  accordion  !  " 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  263 

Auguste  looked  up  suddenly  with  a  strange  glance  at 
his  grandfather. 

"  See  how  he  loves  his  mother ! "  cried  Vanda. 
"Come  and  kiss  me,  my  kitten.  No,  it  is  not  your 
grandfather  3'ou  are  to  thank,  but  monsieur,  who  is 
good  enough  to  lend  me  one.  I  am  to  have  it  to-morrow. 
How  are  they  made,  monsieur?  " 

Godefroid,  at  a  sign  from  the  old  man,  explained  an 
accordion  at  length,  while  sipping  the  tea  which  Auguste 
brought  him  and  which  was  in  truth,  exquisite. 

About  half-past  ten  o'clock  he  retired,  weary  of 
beholding  tlie  desperate  struggle  of  the  son  and  father, 
admiring  their  heroism,  and  the  daih',  hourly  patience 
with  which  they  pla3'ed  their  double  parts,  each  equally 
exhaustinsf. 

''  Well,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard,  who  followed  him 
home,  "  you  now  see,  monsieur,  the  life  I  live.  I  am 
like  a  thief,  on  the  watch  all  the  time.  A  word,  a  ges- 
ture might  kill  my  daughter  ;  a  mere  gewgaw  less  than 
she  is  accustomed  to  seeing  about  her  would  reveal  all 
to  that  mind  that  can  penetrate  ever3'thing." 

"Monsieur,"  replied  Godefroid,  "on  Monday  next 
Halpersohn  shall  pronounce  upon  3'our  daughter.  He 
has  returned.  I  myself  doubt  the  possibilit}'  of  an}' 
science  being  able  to  revive  that  bod}*." 

"Oh!  I  don't  expect  that,"  cried  the  father;  "all  I 
ask  is  that  her  life  be  made  supportable.     I  felt  sure, 


264  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

monsieur,  of  your  s\-mpath3',  and  I  see  that  3'ou  have 
indeed  comprehended  everj'thing  —  Ah  !  there 's  the 
attack  coming  on  !  "  he  exclaimed,  as  the  sound  of  a 
cr}^  came  through  the  partition  ;  "  she  went  bej'ond  her 
strength." 

Pressing  Godefroid's  hand,  the  old  man  hurriedly 
returned  to  his  own  rooms. 

At  eight  o'clock  the  next  morning  Godefroid  knocked 
at  the  door  of  the  celebrated  Polish  physician.  He  was 
shown  by  a  footman  to  the  first  floor  of  a  little  house 
Godefroid  had  been  examining  while  the  porter  was 
seekinof  and  informinsj  the  footman. 

Happily,  Godefroid's  earl}'  arrival  saved  him  the 
annoyance  of  being  kept  waiting.  He  was,  he  sup- 
posed, the  first  comer.  Fi'om  a  very  plain  and  simple 
a'ntechamber  he  passed  into  a  large  study,  where  he 
saw  an  old  man  in  a  dressing-gown  smoking  a  long 
pipe.  The  dressing-gown,  of  black  bombazine,  shin}' 
with  use,  dated  from  the  period  of  the  Polish 
emigration. 

"  What  can  I  do  for  yon?"  said  the  Jewish  doctor, 
'^  for  I  see  3'ou  are  not  ill."  And  he  fixed  on  his  visitor 
a  look  which  had  the  inquisitive,  piercing  expression  of 
the  eyes  of  a  Polish  Jew,  eyes  which  seem  to  have  ears 
of  their  own. 

Halpersohn  was,  to  Godefroid's  great  astonishment, 
a  man  of  fifty-six  3'ears  of  age,  with  small  bow-legs,  and 


Tlie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  265 

a  broad,  powerful  chest  and  shoulders.  There  was 
something  oriental  about  the  man,  and  his  face  in  its 
3'Outh  must  have  been  very  handsome.  The  nose  was 
Hebraic,  long  and  curved  like  a  Damascus  blade.  The 
forehead,  trul}'  Polish,  broad  and  noble,  but  creased  like 
a  bit  of  crumpled  paper,  resembled  that  given  by  the 
old  Italian  masters  to  Saint  Joseph.  The  eyes,  of  a  sea- 
green,  and  circled,  like  those  of  parrots,  with  a  gra}'  and 
wrinkled  membrane,  expressed  slyness  and  avarice  in 
an  eminent  degree.  The  mouth,  gashed  into  the  face 
like  a  wound,  added  to  the  already  sinister  expression 
of  the  countenance  all  the  sarcasm  of  distrust. 

That  pale,  thin  face,  for  Halpersohn's  whole  person 
was  remarkably  thin,  surmounted  b}'  ill-kept  gray  hair, 
ended  in  a  long  and  ver}'  thick,  black  beard,  slightly 
touched  with  white,  which  hid  fulh^ialf  the  face,  so  that 
nothing  was  really  seen  of  it  but  the  forehead,  nose, 
eyes,  cheek-bones,  and  mouth. 

This  friend  of  the  revolutionist  Lelewel  wore  a  black 
A^lvet  cap  which  came  to  a  point  on  the  brow,  and  took 
a  high  light  worth}^  of  the  touch  of  Rembrandt. 

The  question  of  the  ph3'sician  (who  has  since  become 
so  celebrated,  as  much  for  his  genius  as  for  his  avarice) 
caused  some  surprise  in  Godefroid's  mind,  and  he  said 
to  himself :  — 

"  I  wonder  if  he  takes  me  for  a  thief." 

The  answer  to  this  mental  question  was  on  the  doc- 


266  Tlte  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

tor's  table  and  fireplace.  Godefroid  thought  he  was  the 
first  to  arrive  ;  he  was  really  the  last.  Preceding  clients 
had  left  large  offerings  behind  them ;  among  them 
Godefroid  noticed  piles  of  twenty  and  forty-franc  gold . 
pieces  and  two  notes  of  a  thousand  francs  each.  Could 
that  be  the  product  of  one  morning?  He  doubted  it, 
and  suspected  the  Pole  of  intentional  trickery.  Per- 
haps the  grasping  but  infallible  doctor  took  this  method 
of  showing  his  clients,  mostly  rich  persons,  that  gold 
must  be  dropped  into  his  pouch,  and  not  buttons. 

Moses  Halpersohn  was,  undoubtedly-,  largely  paid, 
for  he  cured,  and  he  cured  precisely  those  desperate 
diseases  which  medical  science  declares  incurable.  It 
is  not  known  in  P^urope  that  the  Slav  races  possess  many 
secrets.  They  have  a  collection  of  sovereign  remedies, 
the  fruits  of  their  connection  with  the  Chinese,  Persians, 
Cossacks,  Turks,  and  Tartars.  Certain  peasant  women 
in  Poland,  who  pass  for  witches,  cure  insanity  radically 
with  the  juice  of  herbs.  A  vast  body  of  observations,  not 
codified,  exists  in  Poland  on  the  effects  of  certain  plants, 
and  certain  barks  of  trees  reduced  to  powder,  which  are 
transmitted  from  father  to  son,  and  family  to  family, 
producing  cures  that  are  almost  miraculous. 

Halpersohn,  who  for  five  or  six  j-ears  was  called  a 
quack  on  account  of  his  powders  and  herb  medicines, 
had  the  innate  science  of  a  great  physician.  Not 
only  had  he  studied  much  and  observed  much,  but  he 


The  Brotherhood  oj   Consolation.  267 

had  travelled  in  every  part  of  Germany,  Russia,  Persia, 
and  Turkey,  whence  he  had  gathered  many  a  tradi- 
tionary secret ;  and  as  he  knew  chemistr}"  he  became 
a  living  volume  of  those  wonderful  recipes  scattered 
among  the  wise  women,  or,  as  the  French  call  them, 
the  bonnes  feynmes,  of  every  land  to  which  his  feet  had 
gone,  following  his  father,  a  perambulating  trader. 

It  must  not  be  thought  that  the  scene  in  ' '  The 
Talisman  "  where  Saladin  cures  the  King  of  England  is 
a  fiction.  Halpersohn  possesses  a  silk  purse  which  he 
steeps  in  water  till  the  liquid  is  slightly  colored ; 
certain  fevers  yield  immediatel}'  when  the  patient  has 
drunk  the  prescribed  dose  of  it.  The  virtue  of  plants, 
according  to  this  man,  is  infinite,  and  the  cure  of  the 
worst  diseases  possible.  Nevertheless,  he,  like  the 
rest  of  his  professional  brethren,  stops  short  at  certain 
incomprehensibilities.  Halpersohn  approved  of  the 
invention  of  homoeopath}-,  more  on  account  of  its 
therapeutics  than  for  its  medical  system ;  he  was 
corresponding  at  this  time  with  Hedenius  of  Dresden, 
Chelius  of  Heidelberg,  and  the  celebrated  German 
doctors,  all  the  while  holding  his  own  hand  closed, 
though  it  was  full  of  discoveries.  He  wished  for  no 
pupils. 

The  frame  was  in  keeping  with  this  embodiment  of  a 
Rembrandt  picture.  The  stud}',  hung  with  a  paj)er 
imitating  green  velvet,  was  sliabbily  furnished    with    a 


268  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

green  divan,  the  cover  of  which  was  threadbare.  A  worn- 
out  green  carpet  was  on  the  floor.  A  large  armchair  of 
black  leather,  intended  for  clients,  stood  before  the 
window,  which  was  draped  with  green  curtains.  A  desk 
chair  of  Roman  shape,  made  in  mahogany  and  covered 
with  green  morocco,  was  the  doctor's  own  seat. 

Between  the  fireplace  and  the  long  table  at  which  he 
wrote,  a  common  iron  safe  stood  against  the  wall,  and 
on  it  was  a  clock  of  Viennese  granite,  surmounted  by  a 
group  in  bronze  representing  Cupid  playing  with 
Death,  the  present  of  a  great  German  sculptor  whom 
Halpersohn  had  doubtless  cured.  On  the  mantel-shelf 
was  a  vase  between  two  candlesticks,  and  no  other 
ornament.  On  either  side  of  the  divan  were  corner- 
buffets  of  ebony,  holding  plates  and  dishes,  and  Gode- 
froid  also  noticed  upon  them  two  silver  bowls,  glass 
decanters,  and  napkins. 

This  simplicity,  which  amounted  almost  to  bareness 
struck  Godefroid,  whose  quick  eye  took  it  all  in  as  he 
recovered  his  self-possession. 

"  Monsieur,  I  am,  as  3'ou  say,  perfectly  well  myself; 
T  have  come  on  behalf  of  a  woman  to  whom  you  were 
asked  to  pay  a  visit  some  time  ago.  She  hves  on  the 
boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse." 

'^  Ah!  3-es  ;  the  lady  who  has  sent  her  son  here 
several  times.  Well,  monsieur,  let  her  come  here  to 
me." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  269 

•'Come  here!"  repeated  Godefroid,  indignantl}'. 
"Monsieur,  she  ciinnot  even  be  moved  from  her  bed 
to  a  chair ;  they  lift  her  with  pulleys." 

"You  are  not  a  physician,  I  suppose?"  said  the 
Jewish  doctor,  with  a  singular  grimace  which  made  his 
face  appear  more  wicked  than  it  really  was. 

"  If  the  Baron  de  Nucingen  sent  word  that  he  was  ill 
and  wanted  you  to  visit  him,  would  you  reply,  *  Let  him 
come  here  to  me '  ?  " 

"I  should  go  to  him,"  said  the  Jew,  coldl}',  spitting 
into  a  Dutch  pot  made  of  mahogany  and  full  of  sand. 

"  You  would  go,"  said  Godefroid,  gentlj',  "  because 
the  Baron  de  Nucingen  has  two  millions  a  3'ear,  and  —  " 

"The  rest  has  nothing  to  do  with  the  matter;  I 
should  go." 

"  Well,  monsieur,  you  must  go  to  the  lady  on  the 
boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse  for  the  same  reason. 
Without  possessing  the  fortune  of  the  Baron  de 
Nucingen,  I  am  here  to  tell  you  that  you  ma}'  3'ourself 
put  a  price  upon  this  lad3''s  cure,  or  upon  3'our  attend- 
ance if  you  fail ;  I  am  read}'  to  pay  it  in  advance.  But 
perhaps,  monsieur,  as  you  are  a  Polish  refugee  and,  I  be- 
lieve, a  communist,  the  lady's  parentage  may  induce  you 
to  make  a  sacrifice  to  Poland.  She  is  the  granddaughter 
of  Colonel  Tarlowski,  the  friend  of  Poniatowski." 

"  Monsieur,  you  came  here  to  ask  me  to  cure  that 
lady,  and   not   to  give  me  advice.     In  Poland  I  am  a 


270  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

Pole ;  in  Paris  I  am  Parisian.  Every  man  does  good 
in  his  own  way  ;  the  greed  with  which  I  am  credited  is 
not  without  its  motive.  The  wealth  I  am  amassing  has 
its  destination ;  it  is  a  sacred  one.  I  sell  health;  the 
rich  can  afford  to  purchase  it,  and  I  make  them  pay. 
The  poor  have  their  doctors.  If  I  had  not  a  purpose  in 
view  I  would  not  practise  medicine.  I  live  soberly  and 
I  spend  my  time  rushing  hither  and  thither ;  m}'  natural 
inclination  is  to  be  lazy,  and  I  used  to  be  a  gambler. 
Draw  your  conclusions,  young  man.  You  are  too 
young  still  to  judge  old  men." 

Godefroid  was  silent. 

"  From  what  you  sa}^,"  went  on  the  doctor,  "the 
lad}'  in  question  is  the  granddaughter  of  that  imbecile 
who  had  no  courage  but  that  of  fighting,  and  who  took 
part  in  delivering  over  his  country  to  Catherine  II  ?  " 

"  Yes,  monsieur." 

"  Well,  be  at  her  house  Monday  next  at  three  o'clock," 
said  Halpersohn,  taking  out  a  note-book  in  which  he 
Wrote  a  few  words.  "You  will  give  me  then  two 
hundred  francs ;  and  if  I  promise  to  cure  the  patient 
you  will  give  me  three  thousand.  I  am  told,"  he 
added,  ^'  that  the  lady  has  shrunk  to  almost  nothing." 

"  Monsieur,  if  the  most  celebrated  doctors  in  Paris 
are  to  be  believed,  it  is  a  neurotic  case  of  so  extraordi- 
nary a  nature  that  the}'  denied  the  possibility  of  its 
symptoms  until  they  saw  them." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  271 

"  Ah  !  yes,  I  remember  now  what  the  young  lad  told 
me.       To-morrow,  monsieur." 

Godefroid  withdrew,  after  bowing  to  the  man  who 
seemed  to  liim  as  odd  as  he  was  extraordinar}'.  Noth- 
ing about  him  indicated  a  ph3'sician,  not  even  the  study, 
in  which  the  most  notable  object  was  the  iron  safe,  made 
b}'  Huret  or  Fichet. 

Godefroid  had  just  time  to  get  to  the  passage 
Vivienne  before  the  shops  closed  for  the  da}',  and 
there  he  bought  a  superb  accordion,  which  he  ordered 
sent  at  once  to  Monsieur  Bernard,  giving  the  address. 


272  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 


XVI. 

A    LESSON   IN    CHARITY. 

From  the  doctor's  house  Godefroid  made  his  wa}^ 
to  the  rue  Chanoinesse,  passing  along  the  quai  des 
Augustins,  where  he  hoped  to  find  one  of  the  shops 
of  the  commission-pubUshers  open.  He  was  fortunate 
enough  to  do  so,  and  had  a  long  talk  with  a  young 
clerk  on  books  of  jurisprudence. 

When  he  reached  the  rue  Chanoinesse,  he  found 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  her  friends  just  returning 
from  high  mass  ;  in  replj^  to  the  look  she  gave  him 
Godefroid  made  her  a  significant  sign  with  his  head. 

"Isn't  our  dear  father  Alain  here  to-day?"  he 
said. 

"No,"  she  replied,  "  not  this  Sunday ;  you  will  not 
see  him  till  a  week  from  to-da}-  —  unless  you  go  where 
he  gave  j'ou  rendezvous." 

"Madame,"  said  Godefroid  in  a  low  voice,  "you 
know  he  does  n't  intimidate  me  as  these  gentlemen  do ; 
I  wanted  to  make  my  report  to  him  —  " 

"And  I?" 

"Oh  3'ou !  I  can  tell  you  all;  and  I  have  a  great 
deal  to  tell.     For  my  first  essa}'  I  have  found  a  most 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  273 

extraordinary  misfortune ;  a  cruel  mingling  of  pauper- 
ism and  the  need  for  luxuries ;  also  scenes  of  a 
sublimity  which  surpasses  all  the  inventions  of  our 
greatest  novelists." 

"  Nature,  especially  moral  nature,  is  alwaj'S  greater 
than  art,  just  as  God  is  greater  than  his  creatures. 
But  come,"  said  madame  de  la  Chanterie,  "tell  me 
the  particulars  of  your  first  trip  into  worlds  unknown 
to  you." 

Monsieur  Nicolas  and  Monsieur  Joseph  (for  the 
Abbe  de  Veze  had  remained  a  few  moments  in  Notre- 
Dame)  left  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  alone  with  Gode- 
froid,  who,  being  still  under  the  influence  of  the  emotions 
he  had  gone  through  the  night  before,  related  even  the 
smallest  details  of  his  story  with  the  force  and  ardor 
and  action  of  a  first  experience  of  such  a  spectacle  and 
its  attendant  persons  and  things.  His  narrative  had 
a  great  success  ;  for  the  calm  and  gentle  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  wept,  accustomed  as  she  was  to  sound  the 
depths  of  sorrows. 

"You  did  quite  right  to  send  the  accordion,"  she 
said. 

''I  would  like  to  do  a  great  deal  more,"  said  Gode- 
froid  ;  "inasmuch  as  this  famil}'  is  the  first  that  has 
shown  me  the  pleasures  of  charit}^,  I  should  like  to 
obtain  for  that  splendid  old  man  a  full  return  for  his 
great  book.      I    don't  know   if  you   have   confi,dence 

18 


274  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

enough  in  my  capacity  to  give  me  the  means  of  under- 
taking such  an  affair.  From  information  I  have  ob- 
tained, it  will  cost  nine  thousand  francs  to  manufacture 
an  edition  of  fifteen  hundred  copies,  and  tbeir  seUing 
value  will  be  twenty-four  thousand  francs.  But  as  we 
should  have  to  pay  off  the  three  thousand  and  some 
hundred  francs  due  to  Barbet,  it  would  be  an  outlay  of 
twelve  thousand  francs  to  risk.  Oh !  raadame,  if  3'ou 
onl}^  knew  what  bitter  regrets  I  feel  for  having  dissi- 
pated my  little  fortune !  The  spirit  of  charit}^  has 
appeared  to  me ;  it  fills  me  with  the  ardor  of  an 
initiate.  I  wish  to  renounce  the  world,  I  long  to  em- 
brace the  life  of  these  gentlemen  and  be  worth}^  of 
you.  Many  a  time  during  the  last  two  da3S  I  have 
blessed  the  chance  that  brought  me  to  this  house.  I 
will  obey  3'ou  in  all  things  until  3'Ou  judge  me  fit  to 
be  one  of  3ours." 

''  Then,"  said  Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  after  reflect- 
ing for  a  time,  "listen  to  me,  for  I  have  important 
things  to  tell  you.  You  have  been  allured,  my  child, 
b}'  the  poes}^  of  misfortune.  Yes,  misfortunes  are  often 
l)oetical ;  for,  as  I  think,  poesy  is  a  certain  effect  on 
the  sensibiUties,  and  sorrows  affect  the  sensibihties,  — 
life  is  so  intense  in  grief  I  " 

"Yes,  madame,  I  know  that  I  have  been  gripped  by 
the  demon  of  curiosity.  But  how  could  I  help  it?  I 
have  not  yet  acquired  the  habit  of  penetrating  to  the 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  275 

heart  of  these  great  misfortunes  ;  I  cannot  go  among 
them  with  the  calmness  of  your  three  soldiei'S  of  the 
Lord.  But,  let  me  tell  you,  it  is  since  I  have  recovered 
from  that  first  excitement  that  I  have  chief!}'  longed  to 
(Itivote  myself  to  3'our  work." 

''  Listen  to  me,  my  dear  angel !  "  said  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie,  who  uttered  the  last  three  words  with  a 
gentle  solemnity  that  touched  the  young  man  strangely. 
"We  have  forbidden  ourselves  absoluteh',  —  and  we 
do  not  trifle  with  words  here ;  what  is  forbidden 
no  longer  occupies  our  minds,  —  we  have  forbidden 
ourselves  to  enter  into  an}-  speculations.  To  print  a 
book  for  sale  on  the  chance  of  profit  is  a  matter  of 
business,  and  anj'  operation  of  that  kind  would  throw 
us  into  all  the  entanglements  of  commerce.  Certainly 
your  scheme  seems  to  me  feasible,  —  even  necessarj'. 
But  do  you  think  it  is  the  first  that  has  off'ered  itself? 
A  score  of  times,  a  hundred  times,  we  have  come  upon 
just  such  ways  of  saving  families,  or  firms.  What 
would  have  become  of  us  if  we  had  taken  part  in  such 
affairs?  We  should  be  merchants.  No,  our  true  part- 
nership with  misfortune  is  not  to  take  the  work  into  our 
own  hands,  but  to  help  the  unfortunate  to  work  them- 
selves. Before  long  30U  will  meet  with  misfortunes 
more  bitter  still  than  these.  Would  3'ou  then  do  the 
same  thing, — that  is,  take  the  burdens  of  those  un- 
fortunates wholh'  on  yourself?      You  would  soon  be 


276  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

overwhelmed.  Reflect,  too,  my  dear  child,  that  for  the 
last  3'ear  even  the  Messieurs  Mongenod  find  our  accounts 
too  heav}'  for  them.  Half  your  time  would  be  taken 
up  in  merely  keeping  our  books.  We  have  to-day 
over  two  thousand  debtors  in  Paris,  and  we  must  keep 
the  record  of  their  debts.  Not  that  we  ask  for  pa}'- 
ment ;  we  simpl}"  wait.  We  calculate  that  if  half  the 
money  we  expend  is  lost,  the  other  half  comes  back  to 
us,  sometimes  doubled.  Now,  suppose  your  Monsieur 
Bernard  dies,  the  twelve  thousand  francs  are  probably 
lost.  But  if  3'ou  cure  his  daughter,  if  his  grandson  is 
put  in  the  wa}'  of  succeeding,  if  he  becomes,  some  day,  a 
magistrate,  then,  when  tlie  family  is  prosperous,  the}'  will 
remember  the  debt,  and  return  the  mone}'  of  the  poor 
with  usury.  Do  you  know  that  more  than  one  family 
whom  we  have  rescued  from  povertj^,  and  put  upon 
their  feet  on  the  road  to  prosperit}-  by  loans  of  mone}^ 
without  interest,  have  laid  aside  a  portion  for  the  poor, 
and  have  returned  to  us  the  mone}^  loaned  doubled,  and 
sometimes  tripled?  Those  are  our  only  speculations. 
Moreover,  reflect  that  what  is  now  interesting  you  so 
deeply  (and  you  oilght  to  be  interested  in  it),  namel}', 
the  sale  of  this  law3'er's  book,  depends  on  the  value  of 
the  work.  Have  3'Ou  read  it?  Besides,  though  the 
book  ma3'  be  an  excellent  one,  how  man3'  excellent 
lx)oks  remain  one,  two,  tliree  3'ears  without  obtaining 
the  success  the}'  deserve.     Alas  !  how  man3'  crowns  of 


The  Brotherlxood  of  Consolation.  277 

fame  are  laid  upon  a  grave  !  I  know  that  publishers 
have  ways  of  negotiating  and  realizing  profits  which 
make  their  business  the  most  hazardous  to  have  to  do 
with,  and  the  most  difficult  to  unravel,  of  all  the  trades 
of  Paris.  Monsieur  Joseph  can  tell  you  of  these  diffi- 
culties, inherent  in  the  making  of  books.  Thus,  you 
see,  we  are  sensible ;  we  have  experience  of  all  mise- 
ries, also  of  all  trades,  for  we  have  studied  Paris  for 
many  years.  The  Mongenods  have  helped  us  in  this  ; 
they  have  been  like  torches  to  us.  It  is  through  them 
that  we  know  how  the  Bank  of  France  holds  the  pub- 
lishing business  under  constant  suspicion  ;  although  it 
is  one  of  the  most  profitable  trades,  it  is  unsound.  As 
for  the  four  thousand  francs  necessary  to  save  this 
noble  famil}"  from  the  horrors  of  penury,  —  for  that 
poor  boy  and  his  grandfather  must  be  fed  and  clothed 
properl}^, — I  will  give  them  to  you  at  once.  There 
are  suflferings,  miseries,  wants,  which  we  immediately 
relieve,  without  hesitation,  without  even  asking  whom 
we  help ;  religion,  honor,  character,  are  all  indifferent 
to  us ;  but  when  it  comes  to  lending  money  to  the  poor 
to  assist  them  in  any  active  form  of  industry  or  com- 
merce, then  we  require  guarantees,  with  all  the  stern- 
ness of  usurers.  So  3'ou  must,  my  dear  child,  limit 
3'our  enthusiasm  for  this  unhappy  family  to  finding  for 
the  father  an  honest  publisher.  This  concerns  Mon- 
sieur Joseph.     He  knows  lawyers,  professors,  authors 


278  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

of  works  on  jurisprudence ;  I  will  speak  to  him,  and 
next  Sunday  he  will  be  sure  to  have  some  good  advice 
to  give  you.  Don't  feel  uneasy  ;  some  way  will  cer- 
tainly be  found  to  solve  the  difficult}'.  Perhaps  it 
would  be  well,  however,  if  Monsieur  Joseph  were  to 
read  the  lawyer's  book.  If  you  think  it  can  be  done, 
you  had  better  obtain  the  manuscript." 

Godefroid  was  amazed  at  the  good  sense  of  this 
woman,  whom  he  had  thought  controlled  by  the  spirit  of 
charity  only.  He  took  her  beautiful  hand  and  kissed  it 
saying :  — 

"  You  are  good  sense  and  judgment,  too  ! " 

^'  We  must  be  all  that  in  our  business,"  she  replied, 
with  the  soft  g^jQiy  of  a  real  saint. 

There  was  a  moment's  silence,  and  then  Godefroid 
exclaimed :  — 

"  Two  thousand  debtors  !  did  yo\x  say  that,  madame? 
two  thousand  accounts  to  keep  !  whj',  it  is  immense  !  " 

"  Oh  !  I  meant  two  thousand  accounts  which  relj'  for 
liquidation,  as  I  told  3'ou,  on  the  delicacy  and  good 
feeling  of  our  debtors ;  but  there  are  fully  three  thou- 
sand other  families  whom  we  help  who  make  us  no 
other  return  than  thanks  to  God.  This  is  why  we  feel, 
as  I  told  you,  the  necessity  of  keeping  books  ourselves. 
If  you  prove  to  us  3'our  discretion  and  capacity  3'ou 
shall  be,  if  you  like,  our  accountant.  We  keep  a 
day-book,  a  ledger,  a  book  of  current  accounts,  and  a 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  279 

bank-book.  We  have  many  notes,  but  we  lose  a  great 
deal  of  time  in  looking  them  up.  Ah!  here  are  the 
gentlemen,"  she  added. 

Godefroid,  grave  and  thoughtful,  took  little  part  in 
the  general  conversation  which  now  followed.  He  was 
stunned  by  the  communication  Madame  de  la  Chanterie 
had  just  made  to  him,  in  a  tone  which  implied  that  she 
wished  to  reward  his  ardor. 

^'  Five  thousand  famihes  assisted  !  "  he  kept  repeating 
to  himself.  "If  they  were  to  cost  what  I  am  to  spend 
on  Monsieur  Bernard,  we  must  have  millions  scattered 
tlirough  Paris." 

This  thought  was  the  last  expiring  movement  of  the 
spirit  of  the  world,  which  had  slowly  and  insensibly 
become  extinguished  in  Godefroid.  On  reflection  he 
saw  that  the  united  fortunes  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie, 
]Messieurs  Alain,  Nicolas,  Joseph,  and  that  of  Judge 
Popinot,  the  gifts  obtained  through  the  Abb6  de  Veze, 
and  the  assistance  lent  by  the  firm  of  Mongenod  must 
produce  a  large  capital ;  and  that  this  capital,  increased 
during  the  last  dozen  years  by  grateful  returns  from  those 
assisted,  must  have  grown  like  a  snowball,  inasmuch  as 
the  charitable  stewards  of  it  spent  so  little  on  them- 
selves. Little  b}'  Uttle  he  began  to  see  clearly  into  this 
vast  work,  and  his  desire  to  co-operate  in  it  increased. 

He  was  preparing  at  nine  o'clock  to  return  on  foot  to 
the  boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse  ;  but  Madame  de  la 


280  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

Chanterie,  fearing  the  solitude  of  that  neighborhood  at 
a  late  hour,  made  him  take  a  cab.  When  he  reached 
the  house  Godefroid  heard  the  sound  of  an  instrument, 
though  the  shutters  were  so  carefull}'  closed  that  not  a 
ray  of  light  issued  through  them.  As  soon  as  he 
reached  the  landing,  Auguste,  who  was  probably  on  the 
watch  for  him,  opened  the  door  of  Monsieur  Bernard's 
apartment  and  said  :  — 

*'  Mamma  would  like  to  see  you,  and  my  grandfather 
offers  3'ou  a  cup  of  tea." 

When  Godefroid  entered,  the  patient  seemed  to  him 
transfigured  by  the  pleasure  she  felt  in  making  music ; 
her  face  was  radiant,  her  eyes  were  sparkling  like 
diamonds. 

"I  ought  to  have  waited  to  let  you  hear  the  first 
sounds,"  she  said  to  Godefroid,  "  but  I  flung  myself 
upon  the  little  organ  as  a  starving  man  flings  himself  on 
food.  You  have  a  soul  that  comprehends  me,  and  I 
know  3'ou  will  forgive." 

Vanda  made  a  sign  to  her  son,  who  placed  himself  in 
such  a  wa}^  as  to  press  with  his  foot  the  pedal  which 
filled  the  bellows ;  and  then  the  invalid,  whose  fingers 
had  for  the  time  recovered  all  their  strength  and  agility, 
raising  her  eyes  to  heaven  like  Saint  Cecilia,  played  the 
"  Prayer  of  Moses  in  Egypt,"  which  her  son  had  bought 
for  her  and  which  she  had  learned  by  heart  in  a  few 
hours.     Godefroid  recognized   in  her  playing  the  same 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  281 

quality  as  in  Ciiopin's.  The  soul  was  manifested  by 
divine  sounds  of  which  the  dominant  note  was  that  of 
tender  melancholy.  Monsieur  Bernard  had  received 
Godefroid  with  a  look  that  was  long  a  stranger  to  his 
e3-es.  If  tears  were  not  forever  dried  at  their  source, 
withered  by  such  scorching  sorrows,  that  look  would 
have  been  tearful. 

The  old  man  sat  playing  with  his  snuff-box  and 
looking  at  his  daughter  in  silent  ecstasy. 

"To-morrow,  madame,"  said  Godefroid,  when  the 
music  ceased ;  'Uo-morrow  your  fate  will  be  decided. 
I  bring  you  good  news.  The  celebrated  Halpersohn  is 
coming  to  see  30U  at  three  o'clock  in  the  afternoon. 
He  has  promised,"  added  Godefroid  in  a  low  voice  to 
Monsieur  Bernard,  "  to  tell  me  the  exact  truth." 

The  old  man  rose,  and  grasping  Godefroid' s  hand, 
drew  him  to  a  corner  of  the  room  beside  the  fireplace. 

"  Ah  !  what  a  night  I  shall  pass  !  a  definitive  decision  ! 
My  daughter  cured  or  doomed  !  " 

"  Courage  !  '■  said  Godefroid  ;  "  after  tea  come  out  with 
me." 

"  My  child,  my  child,  don't  play  an}^  more,"  said  the 
old  man  ;  "  3'ou  will  bring  on  an  attack  ;  such  a  strain 
upon  3'our  strength  must  end  in  reaction." 

He  made  Auguste  take  away  the  instrument  and 
offered  a  cup  of  tea  to  his  daughter  with  the  coaxing 
manner  of  a  nurse  quieting  the  petulance  of  a  child. 


282  TJie   Brotherhood  of  Co7isolatio)i. 

"  What  is  the  doctor  like?  "  she  asked,  her  mind 
ah-eady  distracted  by  the  prospect  of  seeing  a  new 
person. 

Vanda,  like  all  prisoners,  was  full  of  eager  curiosit3^ 
When  the  ph3'sical  phenomena  of  her  malady  ceased, 
they  seemed  to  betake  themselves  to  the  moral  nature  ; 
she  conceived  the  strangest  fancies,  the  most  violent 
caprices ;  she  insisted  on  seeing  Rossini,  and  wept 
when  her  father,  whom  she  believed  to  be  all  powerful, 
refused  to  fetch  him. 

Godefroid  now  gave  her  a  minute  account  of  the 
Jewish  doctor  and  his  stud}^ ;  of  which  she  knew 
nothing,  for  Monsieur  Bernard  had  cautioned  Auguste 
not  to  tell  his  mother  of  his  visits  to  Halpersohn,  so 
much  had  he  feared  to  rouse  hopes  in  her  mind  which 
might  not  be  realized. 

Vanda  hung  upon  Godefroid's  words  like  one  fasci- 
nated ;  and  she  fell  into  a  sort  of  ecstasy  in  her 
passionate  desire  to  see  this  strange  Polish  doctor. 

''  Poland  has  produced  many  singular,  mysterious 
beings,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard.  "  To-da}',  for  instance, 
besides  this  extraordinary  doctor,  we  have  Hoene 
Wronski  the  enlightened  mathematician,  the  poet 
Mickievicz,  Towianski  the  mystic,  and  Choj^in,  whose 
talent  is  supernatural.  Great  national  convulsions 
alwaj's  produce  various  species  of  dwarfed  giants." 

"Oh!  dear   papa;    what  a   man  3'ou  are!     If  }' ou 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  283 

would  only  write  down  what  we  hear  3'ou  sa}-  merely  to 
amuse  me  you  would  make  3'our  reputation.  Fancy, 
monsieur,  m}^  dear  old  father  invents  wonderful  stories 
when  I  have  no  novels  to  read ;  he  often  puts  me  to 
sleep  in  that  wa}'.  His  voice  lulls  me,  and  he  quiets 
my  mind  with  his  wit.  Who  can  ever  reward  him  ? 
Auguste,  my  child,  you  ought  for  m}'  sake,  to  kiss  the 
print  of  3'Our  grandfather's  footsteps.'* 

The  young  man  raised  his  beautiful  moist  eyes  to  his 
mother,  and  the  look  he  gave  her,  full  of  a  long-repressed 
compassion,  was  a  poem.  Godefroid  rose,  took  the 
lad's  hand,    and  pressed  it. 

"  God  has  placed  two  angels  beside  you,  madame," 
he  said. 

"Yes,  I  know  that.  And  for  that  reason  I  often 
reproach  myself  for  harassing  them.  Come,  my  dear 
Auguste,  and  kiss  3-our  mother.  He  is  a  child, 
monsieur,  of  whom  all  mothers  might  be  proud ;  pure 
as  gold,  frank  and  honest,  a  soul  without  sin  —  but  too 
passionate  a  soul,  alas !  like  that  of  his  poor  mother. 
Perhaps  God  has  fastened  me  to  this  bed  to  keep  me 
from  the  follies  of  women  —  who  have  too  much  heart," 
she  added,  smiling. 

Godefroid  replied  with  a  smile  and  a  bow. 

*' Adieu,  monsieur;  and  thank  j-our  friend  for  the 
instrument ;  tell  him  it  makes  the  happiness  of  a  poor 
cripple." 


284  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

"  Monsieur,"  said  Godefroid,  when  the}' were  alone 
in  the  latter's  room.  "  I  think  I  ma}^  assure  you  that 
3-0U  shall  not  be  robbed  by  that  trio  of  bloodsuckers. 
I  have  the  necessar}^  sum  to  free  j^our  book,  but  3'ou 
must  first  show  me  3'our  written  agreement  with  them. 
And  after  that,  in  order  to  do  still  more  for  you,  you 
must  let  me  have  your  work  to  read,  —  not  I  m3'self,  of 
course,  I  have  not  knowledge  enough  to  judge  of  it, 
but  a  former  magistrate,  a  lawyer  of  eminence  and  of 
perfect  integrity-,  who  will  undertake,  according  to  what 
he  thinks  of  the  book,  to  find  you  an  honorable  pub- 
lisher with  whom  you  can  make  an  equitable  agreement. 
This,  however,  I  will  not  insist  upon.  Meantime  here  are 
five  hundred  francs,"  he  added,  giving  a  bank-note  to 
the  stupefied  old  man,  "  to  meet  your  present  needs.  I 
do  not  ask  for  any  receipt ;  you  will  be  under  obligations 
to  3'our  own  conscience  onl3^,  and  that  conscience  is  not 
to  move  3'ou  until  3'ou  have  recovered  a  suflJcient 
competence,  —  I  undertake  to  pa3^  Halpersohn." 

"  Who  are  3'Ou,  then?"  asked  the  old  man,  dropping 
into  a  chair. 

"  I  myself,"  replied  Godefroid,  "  am  nothing ;  but  I 
serve  powerful  persons  to  whom  3'Our  distress  is  known, 
and  who  feel  an  interest  in  3'OU.  Ask  me  nothing  more 
about  them." 

' '  But  what  induces  them  to  do  this  ?  "  said  the  old 
man. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  285 

"Religion." 

"  Religion  !  is  it  possible  ?  ^' 

"  Yes,  the  catholic,  apostolic,  and  Roman  religion.'* 

''Ah  1  do  3'ou  belong  to  the  order  of  Jesus?'* 

"  No,  monsieur,"  replied  Godefroid.  "Do  not  feel 
uneas}' ;  these  persons  have  no  designs  upon  you, 
except  that  of  helping  3'ou  to  restore  your  family  to 
prosperitj'." 

"  Can  philanthrop}^  be  anj'thingbut  vanit}'?" 

"Ah!  monsieur,"  said  Godefroid,  hastil}' ;  "do  not 
insult  the  virtue  defined  by  Saint  Paul,  sacred,  catholic 
Love  !  " 

Monsieur  Bernard,  hearing  this  answer,  began  to 
stride  up  and  down  with  long  steps. 

*'I  accept,"  he  said  suddenly,  "and  I  have  but  one 
way  of  thanking  3'ou,  and  that  is  to  offer  3'ou  my  work. 
The  notes  and  citations  are  unnecessary  to  the  magis- 
trate you  speak  of;  and  I  have  still  two  months'  work 
to  do  in  arranging  them  for  the  press.  To-morrow  I 
will  give  you  the  five  volumes,"  he  added,  offering 
Godefroid  his  hand. 

"  Can  I  have  made  a  conversion  ?"  thought  Gode- 
froid, struck  b}^  the  new  expression  which  he  saw  on 
the  old  man's  face. 


286  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 


XVII. 


HALPERSOHN. 


The  next  afternoon  at  three  o'clock  a  cabriolet 
stopped  before  the  house,  and  Godefroid  saw  Halpersohn 
getting  out  of  it,  wrapped  in  a  monstrous  bear-skin 
pelisse.  The  cold  had  strengthened  during  the  night, 
the  thermometer  marking  ten  degrees  of  it. 

The  Jewish  doctor  examined  with  curious  eyes, 
though  furtively,  the  room  in  which  his  client  of  the  day 
before  received  him,  and  Godefroid  detected  the  suspi- 
cious thought  which  darted  from  his  eyes  like  the  sharp 
point  of  a  dagger.  This  rapid  conception  of  distrust 
gave  Godefroid  a  cold  chill,  for  he  thought  within  him- 
self that  such  a  man  would  be  pitiless  in  all  relations  ; 
it  is  so  natural  to  suppose  that  genius  is  connected 
with  goodness  that  a  strong  sensation  of  disgust  took 
possession  of  him. 

'■' Monsieur,"  he  said,  "1  see  that  the  simplicity  of 
my  room  makes  3'ou  uneas}' ;  therefore  3'ou  need  not  be 
surprised  at  my  method  of  proceeding.  Here  are  your 
two  hundred  francs,  and  here,  too,  are  three  notes  of  a 
thousand  each/'  he  added,  drawing  from  his  pocket-book 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  287 

the  money  Madame  cle  la  Chanterie  had  given  him  to 
release  Monsieur  Bernard's  book ;  but  in  case  you  still 
feel  doubtful  of  m}'  solvency  I  offer  you  as  reference 
Messrs.  Mongenod,  bankers,  rue  de  la  Victoire." 

'•  I  know  them,"  said  Halpersohn,  putting  the  ten  gold 
pieces  into  his  pocket. 

"  He  '11  inquire  of  them,"  thought  Godefroid. 

"Where  is  the  patient?"  asked  the  doctor,  rising 
like  a  man  who  knows  the  value  of  time. 

"This  way,  monsieur,"  said  Godefroid,  preceding 
him  to  show  the  way. 

The  Jew  examined  with  a  shrewd  and  suspicious 
eye  the  places  he  passed  through,  giving  them  the  keen, 
rapid  glance  of  a  spy  ;  he  saw  all  the  horrors  of  poverty 
through  the  door  of  the  room  in  which  the  grandfather 
and  the  grandson  lived ;  for,  unfortunatel}',  Monsieur 
Bernard  had  gone  in  to  change  his  clothes  before  enter- 
ing his  daughter's  room,  and  in  his  haste  to  open  the 
outer  door  to  the  doctor,  he  had  forgotten  to  close  that 
of  his  lair. 

He  bowed  in  a  stately  manner  to  Halpersohn,  and 
opened  the  door  of  his  daughter's  room  cautiousl}'. 

"  Vanda,  my  child,  here  is  the  doctor,"  he  said. 

Then  he  stood  aside  to  allow  Halpersohn,  who  kept 
on  his  bear-skin  pelisse,  to  pass  him.  The  Jew  was 
evidentl}'  surprised  at  the  luxury'  of  the  room,  which  in 
this  quarter,  and  more  especially  in  this  house,  was  an 


288  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

anomaly ;  but  his  surprise  only  lasted  for  an  instant,  for 
he  had  seen  among  German  and  Russian  Jews  many 
instances  of  the  same  contrast  between  apparent  misery 
and  hoarded  wealth.  As  he  walked  from  the  door  to 
the  bed  he  kept  his  ej'e  on  the  patient,  and  the  moment 
he  reached  her  he  said  in  Polish :  — 

"You  are  a  Pole?" 

''  No,  I  am  not ;  my  mother  was." 

"Whom  did  3'our  grandfather,  Colonel  Tarlowski, 
marr}^  ?  " 

"A  Pole." 

* '  From  what  province  ?  " 

"  A  Sobolewska,  of  PinSk." 

"  Very  good  ;  monsieur  is  3^our  father?  " 

"  Yes." 

*'  Monsieur,"  he  said,  turning  to  the  old  man  ;  "  your 
wife  —  " 

"  Is  dead ; "  said  Monsieur  Bernard. 

"  Was  she  very  fair?"  said  Halpersohn,  showing  a 
slight  impatience  at  being  interrupted. 

"  Here  is  her  portrait,"  said  Monsieur  Bernard, 
unhooking  from  the  wall  a  handsome  frame  which 
inclosed  several  fine  miniatures. 

Halpersohn  felt  the  head  and  handled  the  hair  of  the 
patient  while  he  looked  at  the  portrait  of  Vanda 
Tarlowska,  born  Countess  Sobolewska. 

''  Relate  to  me  the  symptoms  of  your  illness,"  he 


TJie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  289 

said,  placing  himself  on  the  sofa  and  looking  fixedly'  at 
Vanda  during  the  twenty  minutes  the  histoiy,  given 
alternatel}'  by  the  father  and  daughter,  lasted. 

"  How  old  are  you  ?  " 

"Thirty-eight." 

"Ah!  good!"  he  cried,  rising;  "I  will  answer  for 
the  cure.  Mind,  I  do  not  say  that  I  can  restore  the 
use  of  her  legs ;  but  cured  of  the  disease,  that  she 
shall  be.  Onl}',  I  must  have  her  in  a  private  hospital 
under  my  own  e^e." 

"  But,  monsieur,  my  daughter  cannot  be  moved!  " 

"  I  will  answer  for  her,"  said  Halpersohn,  curtl}' ; 
^'but  1  will  answer  for  her  only  on  those  conditions. 
She  will  have  to  exchange  her  present  malady  for 
another  still  more  terrible,  which  may  last  a  jear,  six 
months  at  the  ver}'  least.  You  may  come  and  see  her 
at  the  hospital,  since  30U  are  her  father." 

"Are  you  certain  of  curing  her?"  said  Monsieur 
Bernard. 

"Certain,"  repeated  the  Jew.  "  Madame  has  in  her 
body  an  element,  a  vitiated  fluid,  the  national  disease, 
and  it  must  be  eliminated.  You  must  bring  her  to  me 
at  Chaillot,  rue  Basse-Saint-Pierre,  private  hospital  of 
Doctor  Halpersohn." 

^^How  can  I?" 

"  On  a  stretcher,  just  as  all  sick  persons  are  carried 
to  hospitals." 

19 


290  The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation, 

"  But  the  removal  will  kill  her  !  " 

"No." 

As  he  said  the  word  in  a  curt  tone  he  was  already  at 
the  door ;  Godefroid  rejoined  him  on  the  staircase. 
The  Jew,  who  was  stifling  with  heat,  said  in  his  ear : 

"  Besides  the  three  thousand  francs,  the  cost  will  be  fif- 
teen francs  a  day,  payable  three  months  in  advance." 

"Ver}^  good,  monsieur.  And,"  continued  Gode- 
froid, putting  one  foot  on  the  step  of  the  cabriolet,  into 
which  the  doctor  had  sprung,  "  3'ou  sa}^  3'ou  will  an- 
swer foi'  the  cure?  " 

"  I  will  answer  for  it,"  said  the  Jewish  doctor.  "  Are 
you  in  love  with  the  lad}?  " 

''  No,"  replied  Godefroid. 

"  You  must  not  repeat  what  I  am  about  to  say  to  you ; 
I  onl}'  sa}'  it  to  prove  to  3'ou  that  I  am  certain  of  a 
cure.  If  you  are  guilty  of  the  slightest  indiscretion 
3^ou  will  kill  her." 

Godefroid  replied  with  a  gesture  onl^-. 

"  For  the  last  seventeen  3'ears  she  has  been  a  victim 
to  the  element  in  her  system    called  j9/ic«  poloJiica,  ^ 

^  Balzac's  description  of  plica  polonica  does  not  agree  with  that 
given  in  English  medical  dictionaries  and  cyclopedias.  Bnt  as  the 
book  was  written  at  Wierschovnia,  Poland,  in  1847,  when  he  was 
attended  by  a  celebrated  Polish  physician,  and  as,  moreover,  he  was 
always  so  scrupnlously  accnrate  in  his  descriptions,  it  is  fair  to  sup- 
pose that  he  knew  of  some  form  of  the  disease  other  than  that 
given  in  the  books.  His  account  probably  applies  to  the  period 
before  it  takes  the  visible  form  described  in  the  books. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  291 

which  has  produced  all  these  ravages.  I  have  seen 
more  terrible  cases  than  this.  Now,  I  alone  in  the 
present  day  know  how  to  bring  this  disease  to  a  crisis, 
and  force  it  outward  so  as  to  obtain  a  chance  to  cure  it 
—  for  it  cannot  always  be  cured.  You  see,  monsieur, 
that  I  am  disinterested.  If  this  lady  were  of  great  im- 
portance, a  Baronne  de  Nucingen,  or  any  other  wife  or 
daughter  of  a  modern  Croesus,  this  cure  would  bring 
me  one  hundred  —  two  hundred  thousand  francs  ;  in 
short,  anything  I  chose  to  ask  for  it.  However,  it  is 
only  a  trifling  loss  to  me." 

"  About  conveying  her?  " 

*'  Bah!  she'll  seem  to  be  dying,  but  she  won't  die. 
There 's  life  enough  in  her  to  last  a  hundred  3'ears,  when 
the  disease  is  out  of  her  S3'stem.  Come,  Jacques,  drive 
on  !  quick,  —  rue  de  ]Monsieur  !  quick  !  "  he  said  to  his 
man. 

Godefroid  was  left  on  the  boulevard  gazing  stupidly 
after  the  cabriolet. 

"Who  is  that  queer  man  in  a  bearskin?"  asked 
Madame  Vauthier,  whom  nothing  escaped  ;  'Ms  it  true, 
what  the  man  in  the  cabriolet  told  me,  that  he  is  one 
of  the  greatest  doctors  in  Paris  ?  " 

"What  is  that  to  you?" 

"  Oh !  nothing  at  all,"  she  rei^lied,  making  a  face. 

"  You  made  a  great  mistake  in  not  putting  3'ourself 
on  m}'"  side,"  said  Godefroid,  returning  slowh'  to  the 


292  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

house  ;  "  yow  would  have  made  more  out  of  me  than  you 
will  ever  get  from  Barbet  and  Metivier;  from  whom, 
mark  my  words,  3'ou  '11  get  nothing." 

"  I  am  not  for  them  particularh',"  said  Madame 
Vauthier,  shrugging  her  shoulders  ;  '^  Monsieur  Barbet 
is  m}'  proprietor,  that 's  all !  " 

It  required  two  days'  persuasion  to  induce  Monsieur 
Bernard  to  separate  from  his  daughter  and  take  her  to 
Chaillot.  Godefroid  and  the  old  man  made  the  trip 
walking  on  each  side  of  the  litter,  canopied  with  blue 
and  white  striped  linen,  in  which  was  the  dear  patient, 
partl}^  bound  to  a  mattress,  so  much  did  her  father 
dread  the  possible  convulsions  of  a  nervous  attack. 
They  started  at  three  o'clock  and  reached  their  destina- 
tion at  five  just  as  evening  was  coming  on.  Godefroid 
paid  the  sum  demanded  for  three  months'  board  in 
advance,  being  careful  to  obtain  a  receipt  for  the  money. 
When  he  went  back  to  pay  the  bearers  of  the  litter,  he 
was  followed  by  Monsieur  Bernard,  who  took  from 
beneath  the  mattress  a  bulky  package  carefully  sealed 
up,  and  gave  it  to  Godefroid. 

"  One  of  these  men  will  fetch  you  a  cab,"  said  the 
old  man  ;  "for  j^ou  cannot  carry  these  four  volumes 
under  your  arm.  That  is  my  book  ;  give  it  to  your 
reader ;  he  may  keep  it  the  whole  of  the  coming  week. 
I  shall  stay  at  least  that  time  in  this  quarter ;  for  I 
cannot  leave  my  daughter  in  such  total  abandonment. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  293 

I  trust  my  grandson ;  be  can  take  care  of  our  rooms ; 
especially  if  you  will  keep  an  ej'e  on  him.  If  I  were 
what  I  once  was  I  would  ask  3^ou  the  name  of  my  critic, 
the  former  magistrate  3'ou  spoke  of;  there  were  but 
few  of  them  whom  I  did  not  know." 

'^Oh,  there  's  no  raj'stery  about  it !  "  said  Godefroid, 
interrupting  Monsieur  Bernard.  "  Now  that  3'ou  have 
shown  this  entire  confidence  in  trusting  me  with  your 
book,  I  will  tell  30U  that  your  censor  is  the  former 
president,  Lecamus  de  Tresnes." 

"Oh,  yes!  —  of  the  Royal  Court  of  Paris.  Take 
him  the  book ;  he  is  one  of  the  noblest  characters  of 
the  present  day.  He  and  the  late  Popinot,  a  judge  of 
the  Lower  Court,  were  both  worthy  of  the  days  of  the 
old  Parliaments.  All  ni}'  fears,  if  I  had  an}*,  are  dissi- 
pated. Where  does  he  live?  I  should  like  to  go  and 
thank  him  for  the  trouble  he  is  taking." 

"You  will  find  him  in  the  rue  Chanoinesse,  under 
the  name  of  Monsieur  Joseph.  I  am  going  there 
now.  Where  is  that  agreement  3'ou  made  with  3'our 
swindlers?"  • 

"Auguste  will  give  it  to  you,"  said  the  old  man, 
re-entering  the  court3'ard  of  the  hospital. 

A  cab  was  now  brought  up  b3^  the  porter,  and  Gode- 
froid jumped  into  it,  —  promising  the  coachman  a  good 
pourboire  if  he  would  get  him  to  the  rue  Chanoinesse 
in  good  time,  for  he  wanted  to  dine  there. 


294  The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation, 

Half  an  hour  after  Vanda's  departure,  three  men 
dressed  in  black,  whom  Madame  Vauthier  let  into  the 
house  by  the  door  on  the  rue  Notre-Dame  des  Champs, 
filed  up  the  staircase,  accompanied  by  their  female 
Judas,  and  knocked  gently  at  the  door  of  Monsieur 
Bernard's  lodging.  As  it  happened  to  be  a  Thursday, 
Auguste  was  at  home.  He  opened  the  door,  and  the 
three  men  glided  in  like  shadows. 

"  What  do  you  want,  messieurs?"  asked  the  lad. 

''These  are  the  rooms  of  Monsieur  Bernard,  —  that 
is,  Monsieur  le  baron,  —  are  they  not?"  - 

"  Yes  ;  but  what  do  you  want?  " 

"You  know  very  well,  3'oung  man,  what  we  want! 
"VVe  are  informed  that  your  grandfather  has  left 
the  house  with  a  covered  litter.  That's  not  sur- 
prising ;  he  had  the  right  to  do  so.  But  I  am  the 
sheriff,  and  I  have  come  to  seize  ever3'thing  he  has 
left.  On  Monda3'  he  received  a  summons  to  pay 
three  thousand  francs,  with  interest  and  costs,  to 
Monsieur  Metivier,  under  pain  of  arrest  for  debt  duly 
notified  to  him,  and  like  an  old  stager  who  is  up  to  the 
tricks  of  his  own  trade,  he  has  walked  off"  just  in  time. 
However,  if  we  can't  catch  him,  his  furniture  has  n't  taken 
wings.     You  see  we  know  all  about  it,  j'oung  man." 

"Here  are  the  stamped  papers  3'our  grandpapa 
did  n't  choose  to  take,"  said  Madame  Vauthier,  thrust- 
ing three  writs  into  Auguste's  hand. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  295 

"Remain  here,  madame,"  said  the  sheriff;  "we  shall 
make  you  legal  guardian  of  the  property.  The  law 
gives  you  forty  sous  a  day,  and  that's  not  to  be 
sneezed  at." 

"  Ha !  now  I  shall  see  the  inside  of  that  fine  bed- 
room !  "  cried  the  Vauthier. 

*'You  shall  not  go  into  my  mother's  room!"  said 
the  young  lad,  in  a  threatening  voice,  springing  be- 
tween the  door  and  the  three  men  in  black. 

At  a  sign  from  the  sheriff,  two  of  the  men  seized 
Auguste. 

"No  resistance,  3'oung  man;  you  are  not  master 
here,"  said  the  sheriff.  "  We  shall  draw  up  the  proces- 
verbal,  and  you  will  sleep  in  jail." 

Hearing  tliat  dreadful  word,  Auguste  burst  into 
tears. 

"Ah,  how  fortunate,"  he  cried,  "that  mamma  has 
gone  !  it  would  have  killed  her." 

A  conference  now  took  place  between  the  sheriff,  the 
other  men,  and  Vauthier,  by  which  Auguste  discovered, 
although  they  spoke  in  a  low  voice,  that  his  grand- 
father's manuscripts  were  what  they  chiefl}'  wanted. 
On  that,  he  opened  the  door  of  his  mother's  bed- 
room. 

"Go  in,"  he  said,  "but  take  care  to  do  no  injury. 
You  will  be  paid  to-morrow  morning." 

Then  he  went  off  weeping  into  the  lair,  seized  his 


296  The  BrotheyJiood  of  Consolation. 

grandfather's  notes  and  stuck  them  into  the  stove,  in 
which,  as  he  knew  verj'  well,  there  was  not  a  spark 
of  fire. 

The  thing  was  done  so  rapidly  that  the  sheriff —  a 
sly,  keen  fellow,  worth}'  of  his  clients  Barbet  and  Meti- 
vier  —  found  the  lad  weeping  in  his  chair  when  he 
entered  the  wretched  room,  after  assuring  himself  that 
the  manuscripts  were  not  in  the  antechamber. 

Though  it  is  not  permissible  to  seize  books  or  manu- 
scripts for  debt,  the  bill  of  sale  which  Monsieur  Bernard 
had  made  of  his  work  justified  this  proceeding.  It 
was,  however,  easy  to  oppose  various  delays  to  this 
seizure,  and  Monsieur  Bernard,  had  he  been  there, 
would  not  have  failed  to  do  so.  For  that  reason  the 
whole  aflfair  had  been  conducted  slyh'.  Madame 
Vauthier  had  not  attempted  to  give  the  writs  to 
Monsieur  Bernard  ;  she  meant  to  have  flung  them  into 
the  room  on  entering  behind  the  sheriff's  men,  so  to 
give  the  appearance  of  their  being  in  the  old  man's 
possession. 

The  proces-verbal  of  the  seizure  took  an  hour  to 
write  down  ;  the  sheriff  omitted  nothing,  and  declared 
that  the  value  of  the  property  seized  was  sufficient  to 
pa^'  the  debt.  As  soon  as  he  and  his  men  had  departed, 
Auguste  took  the  writs  and  rushed  to  the  hospital  to 
find  his  grandfather.  The  sheriff  having  told  him  that 
Madame  Vauthier  was  now  responsible,  under  heavy 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  297 

penalties,  for  the  safety  of  the  pvopert}*,  he  could  leave 
the  house  without  fear  of  robberj*. 

The  idea  of  his  grandfather  being  dragged  to  prison 
for  debt  drove  the  poor  lad,  if  not  exactly  crazv,  at  any 
rate  as  crazy  as  youth  becomes  under  one  of  those 
dangerous  and  fatal  excitements  in  which  all  powers 
ferment  at  once,  and  lead  as  often  to  evil  actions  as  to 
heroic  deeds.  When  he  reached  the  rue  Basse-Saint- 
Pierre,  the  porter  told  him  that  he  did  not  know  what 
had  become  of  the  father  of  the  lad^'  who  had  arrived 
that  afternoon  ;  the  orders  of  Monsieur  Halpersohn  were 
to  admit  no  one  to  see  her  for  the  next  eight  daj's, 
under  pain  of  putting  her  life  in  danger. 

This  answer  brought  Auguste's  exasperation  to  a 
crisis.  He  returned  to  the  boulevard  du  Mont- 
Parnasse,  turning  over  in  his  mind  the  wildest  and 
most  extravagant  plans  of  action.  Pie  reached  home 
at  half-past  eight  o'clock,  half  famished,  and  so 
exhausted  with  hunger  and  distress  that  he  listened  to 
Madame  Vauthier  when  she  asked  liim  to  share  her 
supper,  which  happened  to  be  a  mutton  stew  with 
[)Otatoes.  The  poor  lad  fell  half  dead  upon  a  chair  in 
that  atrocious  woman's  room. 

Persuaded  by  the  wheedling  and  honeyed  words  of  the 
old  vulture,  he  replied  to  a  few  questions  about  Gode- 
froid  which  she  adroitly  put  to  him,  letting  her  discover 
that  it  was  really  her  other  lodger  who  was  to  pay  his 


298  The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation. 

grandfather's  debts  the  next  day,  and  also  that  it  was 
to  him  they  owed  the  improvement  in  their  condition 
during  the  past  week.  The  widow  listened  to  these 
confidences  with  a  dubious  air,  plying  Auguste  with 
several  glasses  of  wine  meantime. 

About  ten  o'clock  a  cab  stopped  before  the  house, 
and  Madame  Vauthier  looking  out  exclaimed:  — 

"  Oh  !  it  is  Monsieur  Godefroid." 

Auguste  at  once  took  the  key  of  his  apartment  and 
went  up  to  meet  the  protector  of  his  family ;  but  he 
found  Godefroid's  face  and  manner  so  changed  that 
he  hesitated  to  address  him  until,  generous  lad  that  he 
was,  the  thought  of  his  grandfather's  danger  came  over 
him  and  gave  him  courage. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  299 


XVIII. 

WHO    MONSIEUR    BERNARD    WAS. 

The  cause  of  this  change  and  of  the  sternness  in 
Godefroid's  face  was  an  event  which  had  just  taken 
place  in  the  rue  Chanoinesse.  When  the  initiate 
arrived  there  he  found  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  her 
friends  assembled  in  the  salon  awaiting  dinner ;  and  he 
instantly  took  Monsieur  Joseph  apart  to  give  him  the 
four  volumes  on  "  The  Spirit  of  Modern  Laws." 
Monsieur  Joseph  took  the  voluminous  manuscript  to 
his  room  and  returned  for  dinner ;  then,  after  sharing 
in  the  conversation  for  part  of  the  evening,  he  went 
back  to  his  room,  intending  to  begin  the  reading  of  the 
book  that  night. 

Godefroid  was  much  astonished  when  Manon  came 
to  him  soon  after  Monsieur  Joseph's  retirement  and 
asked  if  he  would  at  once  go  up  and  speak  to  that 
gentleman.  He  went  up,  conducted  b}'  Manon,  and 
was  unable  to  pay  any  heed  to  the  apartment  (which 
he  had  never  before  entered)  so  amazed  was  he  bv  the 
agitated  look  and  manner  of  a  man  who  was  usually 
calm  and  placid. 


300  The  Brotherhood  of  Co7isolation. 

"  Do  you  know,"  asked  Monsieur  Joseph,  once  more 
a  judge,  "  who  the  author  of  this  work  is?  " 

"He  is  Monsieur  Bernard,"  said  Godefroid ;  "I 
know  liim  only  under  that  name.  I  did  not  open  the 
package." 

"  True/'  said  Monsieur  Joseph,  as  if  to  himself,  "  I 
broke  the  seals  m3'self.  You  have  not  tried  to  find  out 
anything  about  his  antecedents  ?  " 

"  No,  I  onlj'  know  that  he  made  a  love-match  with 
the  daughter  of  General  Tarlowski ;  that  the  daughter 
is  named  after  the  mother,  Vanda ;  the  grandson  is 
called  Auguste  ;  and  I  have  seen  a  portrait  of  Monsieur 
Bernard  in  the  red  robes  of  a  president  of  the  Roj'al 
Courts."' 

"Here,  read  that,"  said  Monsieur  Joseph,  pointing 

« 

to  the  titlepage  of  the  manuscript,  written  probably  in 
Auguste's  handwriting :  — 

On  The 
Spirit  of  Modern  Laws. 

BY  M.  Bernard-Jean-Baptiste  Macloud, 

Baron  Bourlac. 

Formerly  attorney-general  to  the  Royal  Court  of  Rouen. 

Grand  officer  of  the  Legion  of  honor. 

"Ha!  the  slayer  of  Madame's  daughter!  of  the 
Chevalier  du  Vissard !  the  man  who  condemned  her  to 
twenty   3'ears'   imprisonment ! "   said  Godefroid,    in   a 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  301 

feeble  voice.  His  legs  gave  way  under  him,  and  he 
dropped  into  a  chair.  "  What  a  beginning !  "  he 
muttered. 

"  This  matter,  my  dear  Godefroid,"  resumed  Monsieur 
Joseph,  "concerns  us  all.  You  have  done  your  part; 
leave  the  rest  to  us.  I  beg  you  to  have  no  more  to  do 
with  it ;  go  and  fetch  the  things  you  have  left  behind 
you.  Don't  sa}'  a  word  of  all  this.  Practise  absolute 
discretion.  Tell  the  Baron  de  Bourlac  to  address 
himself  to  me.  By  that  time  we  shall  have  decided 
how  to  act  under  the  circumstances." 

Godefroid  left  him,  took  a  cab,  and  went  back  as  fast 
as  he  could  to  the  boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse,  filled 
with  horror  as  he  remembered  that  indictment  signed 
with  Bourlac's  name,  the  blood}'  drama  ending  on  the 
scaffold,  and  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  imprisonment 
at  Bicetre.  He  understood  now  the  abandonment  in 
which  this  former  attorney-general,  another  Fouquier- 
Tinville  in  the  public  mind,  was  ending  his  days,  and 
the  true  reasons  for  the  concealment  of  his  name. 

"  May  Monsieur  Joseph  avenge  her  terribl}^ !  "  he 
thought.  As  he  uttered  the  wish  in  his  own  mind, 
he  saw  Auguste. 

"  What  do  you  want  of  me  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  M}'  good  friend,  such  a  dreadful  misfortune  has 
overtaken  us  that  I  am  almost  mad.  Wretches  have 
come   here   and   seized   all  my  mother's  property,   and 


302  The  Brotherhood  of  Co7i8olation. 

they  are  going  to  put  my  grandfather  in  prison.  But  it 
is  not  on  account  of  those  misfortunes  that  I  come  to 
implore  you,"  said  the  lad,  with  Roman  pride  ;  "  it  is  to 
ask  3-0U  to  do  me  a  service  such  as  people  do  to  those 
who  are  condemned  to  die." 

"  Go  on,  what  is  it?  "  said  Godefroid. 

"  They  came  here  to  seize  mj^  grandfather's  manu- 
scripts ;  and  as  I  think  he  gave  you  the  book  itself  I 
want  you  to  take  the  notes,  for  Madame  Vauthier  will 
not  let  me  carr}^  an^'thing  out  of  the  house.  Put  them 
with  the  volumes  and  —  " 

"Yes,  yes,"  said  Godefroid,  "go  and  get  them  at 
once." 

While  the  lad  went  back  to  his  own  rooms,  returning 
immediately^,  Godefroid  reflected  that  the  poor  child  was 
guilt}^  of  no  crime,  and  that  he  ought  not  to  put  despair 
into  that  young  heart  by  speaking  of  his  grandfather 
and  of  the  punishment  for  his  savage  political  actions 
that  had  overtaken  his  sad  old  age.  He  therefore  took 
the  little  package  with  a  good  grace. 

"  What  is  your  mother's  name?"  he  asked. 

"My  mother  is  the  Baronne  de  Mergi ;  my  father 
was  the  son  of  the  president  of  the  Ro3'al  Court  at 
Rouen." 

"  Ah  !  "  said  Godefroid  ;  "  then  your  grandfather  mar- 
ried his  daughter  to  the  son  of  the  famous  president 
Mero;!." 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  303 

"Yes,  monsieur." 

"  Now,  my  little  friend,  leave  me,"  said  Godefroid. 
He  went  with  3'oung  Mergi  to  the  landing,  and  called  to 
Madame  Vauthier. 

"Mere  Vauthier,"  he  said,  "  3'ou  can  let  my  rooms. 
I  shall  not  come  back  any  more." 

He  gathered  his  things  together,  went  downstairs, 
and  got  into  the  cab. 

"  Have  3'oa  given  anything  to  that  gentleman?  "  said 
the  Vauthier  to  Auguste. 

"Yes,"  said  the  young  man. 

"You're  a  pretty  fellow !  that's  the  agent  of  3'onr 
grandfathers  enemies.  He  managed  this  whole  busi- 
ness, and  the  proof  is  that,  now  that  the  trick  is  played, 
he  goes  off  and  is  n't  coming  back  any  more.  He  has 
just  told  me  I  can  let  his  lodging." 

Auguste  flew  to  the  boulevard  and  ran  after  the  cab 
shouting  so  loudl3^  that  he  finall3^  stopped  it. 

'*  What  do  you  want?  "  asked  Godefroid. 

"  M3-  grandfather's  manuscripts." 

"  Tell  them  he  can  get  them  from  Monsieur  Joseph." 

The  youth  thought  the  words  were  intended  as  a  cruel 
joke.  He  sat  down  in  the  snow  as  he  saw  the  cab 
disappearing  rapidl3'.  Presentl3'  he  sprang  up  witli 
momentar3'  vigor,  returned  to  his  room  and  went  to  bed 
worn  out  with  fatigue  and  distress. 

The  next  morning,  when  the  poor  bo3'  woke  alone  in 


304  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

that  apartment  so  lateh'  occupied  b}'  his  mother  and 
grandfather,  the  painful  emotions  of  his  cruel  position 
filled  his  mind.  The  solitude  of  his  home,  where  up  to 
this  time  every  moment  had  had  its  duty  and  its  occupa- 
tion, seemed  so  hard  to  bear  that  he  went  down  to 
Madame  Vauthier  to  ask  if  she  had  received  any  news 
of  his  grandfather.  The  woman  answered  sneeringly 
that  he  knew  ver}'  well,  or  he  might  know,  where  to  find 
his  grandfather ;  the  reason  why  he  had  not  come  m, 
she  said,  was  because  he  had  gone  to  live  at  the  chateau 
de  Clichy.  This  malicious  speech,  from  the  woman  who 
had  coaxed  and  wheedled  him  the  evening  before,  put 
the  lad  into  another  frenz}',  and  he  rushed  to  the 
hospital  once  more,  desperate  with  the  idea  that  his 
grandfather  was  in  prison. 

Baron  Bourlac  had  wandered  all  night  round  the  hos- 
pital, where  he  was  refused  entrance,  and  round  the 
private  residence  of  Dr.  Halpersohn  from  whom  he 
wished,  naturall}',  to  obtain  an  explanation  of  such 
treatment.  The  doctor  did  not  get  home  till  two  in  the 
morning.  At  half-past  one  the  old  man  was  at  his 
door ;  on  being  told  he  was  absent,  he  turned  and 
walked  about  the  grand  alley  of  the  Champs  Elyse'es 
until  half-past  two.  When  he  again  went  to  the  house, 
the  porter  told  him  that  Monsieur  Halpersohn  had 
returned,  gone  to  bed,  was  asleep,  and  could  not  be 
disturbed. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  305 

The  poor  father,  in  despair,  wandered  along  the  quay 
and  under  the  frost-laden  trees  of  the  Cours-la-reine, 
waiting  for  dajdight.  At  nine  o'clock  in  the  morning 
he  again  presented  himself  at  the  doctors  house, 
demanding  to  know  the  reason  wh}'  his  daughter  was 
thus  virtually  imprisoned. 

"  Monsieur,"  replied  the  doctor,  to  whose  presence 
he  was  admitted, ' '  yesterda}'  I  told  3'ou  I  would  answer 
for  your  daughter's  recovery ;  but  to-day  I  am  respon- 
sible for  her  life,  and  3"ou  will  readity  understand  that  I 
must  be  the  sovereign  master  in  such  a  case.  Yester- 
day your  daughter  took  a  medicine  intended  to  bring 
out  her  disease,  the  plica  polonica  ;  until  that  horrible 
disease  shows  itself  on  the  surface  you  cannot  see  her. 
I  will  not  allow  excitement  or  any  mistake  of  manage- 
ment to  carry  off  my  patient  and  your  daughter.  If 
3'Ou  positively  insist  on  seeing  her,  I  shall  call  a  con- 
sultation of  three  physicians,  so  as  to  relieve  m3'self  of 
responsibility,  for  the  patient  maj^  die  of  it." 

The  old  man,  w^orn  out  with  fatigue,  dropped  on  a 
chair ;  but  he  rose  immediatel}",  sa3'ing  :  — 

"Forgive  me,  monsieur.  I  have  spent  the  night 
waiting  for  3'ou  in  dreadful  distress  of  mind.  You  can- 
not know  to  what  degree  I  love  m3"  daughter ;  I  have 
nursed  her  for  fifteen  years  hovering  between  life  and 
death,  and  this  week  of  waiting  is  torture  to  me." 

The  baron  left  the  room  staggering  like  a  drunken 

20 


306  The  Brotlierliood  of  Consolation, 

man.  The  doctor  followed  and  supported  him  b}'  the 
arm  until  he  saw  him  safel^^  down  the  staircase. 

An  hour  later  Auguste  de  Mergi  entered  the  doctor's 
room.  On  questioning  the  porter  at  the  hospital  the 
unhappy  lad  heard  that  his  grandfather  had  been 
refused  an  entrance  and  had  gone  awa}'  to  find  Mon- 
sieur Halpersohn,  who  could  probabh'  give  information 
about  him.  As  Auguste  entered  the  doctor's  study 
Halpersohn  was  breakfasting  on  a  cup  of  chocolate  and 
a  glass  of  water.  He  did  not  disturb  himself  at  the 
3'Oung  man's  entrance,  but  went  on  sopping  his  bread  in 
the  chocolate  ;  for  he  never  ate  anything  for  breakfast  but 
a  small  roll  cut  into  four  strips  w'ith  careful  precision. 

"  Well,  young  man,"  he  said,  glancing  at  Vanda's 
son,  "  so  30U  have  come,  too,  to  find  out  about  your 
mother  ?  " 

"  Yes,  monsieur ;  "  replied  Auguste  de  Mergi. 

Auguste  was  standing  near  the  table  on  which  lay 
several  bank-notes  among  a  pile  of  gold  louis.  Under 
the  circumstances  in  which  the  unhappj'  boy  was  placed 
the  temptation  was  stronger  than  his  principles,  solid 
as  they  were.  He  saw  a  means  of  saving  his  grand- 
father and  the  fruits  of  almost  a  lifetime  of  toil.  He 
yielded.  The  fascination  was  rapid  as  thought ;  and  it 
was  justified  to  the  child's  mind  by  the  idea  of  self- 
devotion.  "I  destroj'  myself,  but  I  save  my  mother 
and  my  grandfather,"'    he  thought.      Under  the  strain 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  307 

put  upon  his  reason  b}'  this  criminal  temptation  he 
acquired,  like  madmen,  a  singular  and  momentar}^ 
dexterit}'. 

Halpersohn,  an  experienced  observer,  had  divined, 
retrospectiveh',  the  life  of  the  old  man  and  that  of  the 
lad  and  of  the  mother.  He  felt  or  perceived  the  truth  ; 
the  Baronne  de  Mergi's  remarks  had  helped  to  unveil  it 
to  him ;  and  the  result  was  a  feeling  of  benevolent  pity 
for  his  new  clients.  As  for  respect  or  admiration,  he 
was  incapable  of  those  emotions. 

"  Well,  m}'  dear  bo}^,"  he  replied  familiarl}',  "I  am 
taking  care  of  your  mother,  and  I  shall  return  her  to 
you  3'oung  and  handsome  and  perfectly'  well  in  health. 
Hers  is  one  of  those  rare  cases  in  which  physicians  take 
an  interest.  Besides,  through  her  mother,  she  is  a 
compatriot  of  mine.  You  and  your  grandfather  must 
for  two  weeks  have  the  courage  to  keep  away  from 
Madame—?" 

"  The  Baronne  de  Mergi." 

"Ah!  if  she  is  a  baroness,  you  must  be  a  baron," 
remarked  Halpersohn. 

At  that  instant  the  theft  was  accomplished.  While 
the  doctor  was  looking  at  his  sopped  bread  heav^'  with 
chocolate,  Auguste  snatched  four  notes  and  put  them 
into  his  pocket,  as  if  he  were  merely  putting  his  hand 
there  by  accident. 

"Yes,  monsieur,"  he  replied,  "I  am  a  baron,  and  so  is 


308  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

my  grandfather ;    he  was  attorney-general  under  the 
Restoration." 

''You  blush,  young  man;  there's  no  need  to  blush 
for  being  a  poor  baron  ;  that 's  common  enough." 

''  Who  told  you,  monsieur,  that  we  are  poor?  " 

"  Your  grandfather  told  me  be  had  spent  the  night 
in  the  Champs  Elysees ;  and  though  I  know  no  palace 
with  half  so  fine  a  ceiling  as  that  of  the  skies  at  two 
o'clock  this  morning,  I  assure  3'ou  it  was  prettj^  cold 
in  the  palace  where  your  grandfather  passed  the  night. 
We  don't  select  the  '  Star '  inn  from  choice." 

"  Has  m}^  grandfather  been  here  this  morning?"  said 
Auguste,  seizing  the  opportunity  to  get  away.  "  I 
thank  you,  monsieur,  and  I  will  call  again,  if  3'ou  will 
permit  me,  to  ask  for  news  of  my  mother." 

As  soon  as  he  was  in  the  street  the  young  baron 
took  a  cab  to  go  as  rapidly  as  he  could  to  the  sheriff's 
office,  where  he  paid  his  grandfather's  debt.  The  sheriff 
gave  him  the  papers  and  a  receipted  bill  of  costs,  and 
told  one  of  his  clerks  to  accompany  the  young  man 
home  and  reUeve  the  legal  guardian  of  her  functions. 

"As  Messieurs  Barbet  and  Me'tivier  live  in  your 
quarter,"  he  said,  "I  will  tell  my  j^oung  man  to  carry 
the  mone}^  there  and  obtain  the  bill  of  sale  of  the 
books  and  return  it  to  you." 

Auguste  who  did  not  understand  either  the  terms  or 
the  formalities  of  the  law,  did  exactly  as  he  was  told. 


TJie  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  309 

He  received  seven  hundred  francs  change  from  the  four 
thousand  francs  he  had  stolen,  and  went  away  with  the 
clerk.  He  got  back  into  the  cab  is  a  condition  of  semi- 
stupor  ;  for,  the  result  being  now  obtained,  remorse 
began ;  he  saw  himself  dishonored,  cursed  by  his  grand- 
father, whose  inflexible  nature  was  well-known  to  him, 
and  he  felt  that  his  mother  would  surely  die  if  she  knew 
him  guilty.  All  nature  changed  for^him.  He  was  hot ; 
he  did  not  see  the  snow  ;  the  houses  looked  hke  spectres 
flitting  past  him. 

By  the  time  he  reached  home  the  young  baron  had 
decided  on  his  course,  which  was  certainly  that  of  an 
honest  man.  He  went  to  his  mother's  room,  took  the 
gold  snufl'-box  set  with  diamonds  given  to  his  grand- 
father b}'  the  Emperor,  and  wrapped  it  in  a  parcel 
with  the  seven  hundred  francs  and  the  following  let- 
ter, which  required  several  rough  copies  before  it  was 
satisfactory.  Then  he  directed  the  whole  to  Doctor 
Halpersohn :  — 

Monsieur,  —  The  fruits  of  twenty  years  of  my  grand- 
father's toil  were  about  to  be  seized  by  usurers,  who  even 
threatened  to  put  him  in  prison.  Three  thousand  three 
hundred  francs  were  enough  to  save  him.  Seeing  all  that 
money  on  your  table,  I  could  not  resist  the  happiness  of 
freeing  my  grandfather  from  his  danger.  I  borrowed,  with- 
out your  consent,  four  thousand  francs  of  you ;  but  as  three 
thousand  three  hundred  were  all  that  was  necessary,  I  send 
the  other  seven  hundred  in  money,  together  with  a  gold 


310  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

snuff-box  set  with  diamonds,  given  to  my  grandfather  by 
the  Emperor,  the  value  of  which  will  probably  cover  the 
whole  sum. 

In  case  you  do  not  believe  in  the  honor  of  him  who  will 
forever  regard  you  as  a  benefactor,  I  pray  you  to  keep 
silence  about  an  act  which  would  be  quite  unjustifiable 
under  other  circumstances;  for  by  so  doing  you  will  save 
my  grandfather's  life,  just  as  you  are  saving  my  mother's 
life;    and  I  shall  be  forever 

Your  devoted  servant, 

AUGUSTE    DE   MeRGI. 

About  half-past  two  o'clock  in  the  afternoon, 
Auguste,  who  went  himself  as  far  as  the  Champs 
Elysees,  sent  the  package  from  there  by  a  street 
messenger  to  Doctor  Halpersohn's  house ;  then  he 
walked  slowly  homeward  by  the  pont  de  Jena,  the 
Invalides,  and  the  boulevards,  relying  on  Halpersohn's 
generosity. 

The  Polish  doctor  had  meantime  discovered  the  theft, 
and  he  instantly  changed  his  opinion  of  his  clients.  He 
now  thought  the  old  man  had  come  to  rob  him,  and 
being  unable  to  succeed,  had  sent  the  boy.  He  doubted 
the  rank  they  had  claimed,  and  went  straight  to  the 
police-office,  where  he  lodged  a  complaint,  requesting 
that  the  lad  might  be  arrested  at  once. 

The  prudence  with  which  the  law  proceeds  seldom 
allows  it  to  move  as  rapidly  as  complainants  desire ; 
but  about  three  o'clock  of  that  day  a  commissary  of 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  811 

police,  accompanied  by  agents  wlio  kept  watcli  outside 
the  house,  was  questioning  Madame  Vauthier  as  to  her 
lodgers,  and  the  widow  was  increasing,  without  being 
aware  of  it,  the  suspicions  of  the  policeman. 

When  Nepomucene  saw  the  police  agents  stationed 
outside  the  house,  he  thought  the}'  had  come  to  arrest 
the  old  man,  and  as  he  was  fond  of  Monsieur  Auguste, 
he  rushed  to  meet  Monsieur  Bernard,  whom  he  now 
saw  on  his  way  home  in  the  avenue  de  TObservatoire. 

"Hide  yourself,  monsieur!"  he  cried,  "the  police 
have  come  to  arrest  3'ou.  The  sheriff  was  here  3'ester- 
day  and  seized  everything.  Madame  Vauthier  did  n't 
give  3'ou  the  stamped  papers,  and  she  says  5'ou  '11  be  in 
Clich}'  to-night  or  to-morrow.  There,  don't  you  see 
those  policemen  ? " 

Baron  Bourlac  immediatel}'  resolved  to  go  straight  to 
Barbet.  The  former  publisher  lived  in  the  rue  Sainte- 
Catherine  d'Enfer,  and  it  took  him  a  quarter  of  an  hour 
to  reach  the  house. 

"Ah!  I  suppose  3'ou  have  come  to  get  that  bill 
of  sale,"  said  Barbet,  repl3-ing  to  the  salutation  of  his 
victim.     "Here  it  is." 

And,  to  Baron  Bourlac's  great  astonishment,  he  held 
out  the  document,  which  the  baron  took,  saying,  — 

"  I  do  not  understand." 

"  Did  n't  3'ou  pay  me  ?  "  said  the  usurer. 

"Are  yon  pnid?" 


312  The  Brotlierhood  of  Consolation. 

"  Yes,  your  grandson  took  the  money  to  the  sheriff 
this  morning." 

"Then  it  is  true  3'ou  made  a  seizure  at  my  house 
5'esterday?" 

"Haven't  you  been  home  for  two  days?"  asked 
Barbet.  "  But  an  old  magistrate  ought  to  know  what 
a  notification  of  arrest  means." 

Hearing  that  remark,  the  baron  bowed  coldly  to 
Barbet  and  returned  home,  thinking  that  the  police- 
men whom  Nepomucene  had  pointed  out  must  have 
come  for  the  two  impecunious  authors  on  the  upper 
floor.  He  walked  slowty,  lost  in  vague  apprehensions  ; 
for,  in  spite  of  the  explanation  he  gave  himself,  Nepo- 
mucene's  words  came  back,  and  seemed  to  him  more 
and  more  obscure  and  inexplicable.  Was  it  possible 
that  Godefroid  had  betrayed  him? 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  313 


XIX. 


VENGEANCE. 


The  old  man  walked  mechanically  along  the  rue 
Notre-Dame  des  Champs,  and  entered  the  house  by 
the  little  door,  which  he  noticed  was  open.  There  he 
came  suddenly  on  Nepomucene. 

*'0h,  monsieur,  come  quick!  they  are  taking  Mon- 
sieur Auguste  to  prison !  They  arrested  him  on  the 
boulevard  ;  it  was  he  they  were  looking  for ;  they  have 
examined  him." 

The  old  man  bounded  like  a  tiger,  rushed  through 
the  house  with  the  speed  of  an  arrow,  and  reached  the 
door  on  the  boulevard  in  time  to  see  his  grandson  get- 
ting into  a  hackney-coach  with  three  men. 

"  Auguste,"  he  said,  "  what  does  all  this  mean?" 

The  poor  boy  burst  into  tears  and  fainted  awa}'. 

"  Monsieur,  I  am  the  Baron  Bourlac,  formerly 
attorney-general,"  he  said  to  the  commissary  of  police, 
whose  scarf  now  attracted  his  eye.  "  I  entreat  you  to 
explain  all  this." 

"Monsieur,  if  3'ou  are  Baron  Bourlac,  two  words 
will  be  enough.  I  have  just  examined  this  young  man, 
and  he  admits  —  " 


314  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation, 

"What?" 

"The  robbery  of  four  thousand  francs  from  Doctor 
Halpersohn  !  " 

"  Is  that  true,  Auguste  ?  " 

"Grandpapa,  T  sent  him  as  securit}^  your  diamond 
snuff-box.     I  did  it  to  save  yon  from  going  to  prison." 

"Unhappy  boy!  wliat  have  you  done?  The  dia- 
monds are  false!"  cried  the  baron;  "I  sold  the  real 
ones  three  years  ago  I " 

The  commissary  of  police  and  his  agents  looked  at 
each  other.  That  look,  full  of  many  things,  was  inter- 
cepted by  Baron  Bourlac,  and  seemed  to  blast  him. 

"Monsieur,"  he  said  to  the  commissary,  "you  need 
not  feel  uneasy ;  I  shall  go  myself  to  the  prefect ;  but 
you  are  witness  to  the  fact  that  I  kept  my  grandson 
ignorant  of  the  loss  of  the  diamonds.  Do  your  duty ; 
but  I  implore  you,  in  the  name  of  humanity,  put  that 
lad  in  a  cell  by  himself;  I  will  go  to  the  prison.  To 
which  one  are  you  taking  him?" 

"Are  you  really  Baron  Bourlac?"  asked  the  com- 
missary. 

"  Oh,  monsieur  !  " 

"  The  fact  is  that  the  municipal  judge  and  I  doubted 
if  it  were  possible  that  you  and  your  grandson  could  be 
guilty.  We  thought,  and  the  doctor,  too,  that  some 
scoundrels  had  taken  your  name." 

He  took  the  baron  aside,  and  added  :  — 


The  Brotlierliood  of  Consolation.  315 

' '  Did  3'ou  go  to  see  Doctor  Halpersohn  this  morn- 


ins 


9" 


*'  Yes,  monsieur." 

"  Your  grandson  went  there  half  an  hour  after  3'ou." 

*'Did  he?  I  knew  nothing  of  that.  I  have  just 
returned  home,  and  have  not  seen  my  grandsdh  for 
two  da^'s." 

"  The  writs  he  has  shown  me  and  the  examination 
explain  ever3'thing,"  said  the  commissary  of  police. 
"  I  see  the  cause  of  the  crime.  Monsieur,  I  ought  b}' 
rights  to  arrest  you  as  accomplice  to  your  grandson  ; 
for  3'our  answers  confirm  the  allegations  in  Doctor 
Halpersohn's  complaint.  But  these  papers,  which  I  here 
return  to  you,"  holding  out  to  the  old  man  a  bundle  of 
papers,  ''do  prove  jou  to  be  Baron  Bourlac.  Never- 
theless, you  must  hold  yourself  ready  to  appear  before 
Monsieur  Marest,  the  judge  of  the  Municipal  Court  who 
has  cognizance  of  the  case.  As  for  your  grandson,  I 
will  speak  to  the  procureur  du  roi^  and  we  will  take 
all  the  care  of  him  that  is  due  to  the  grandson  of  a 
former  judge,  —  the  victim,  no  doubt,  of  3'outhful  error. 
But  the  complaint  has  been  made,  the  delinquent  ad- 
mits his  guilt,  I  have  drawn  up  the  proces- verbal,  and 
served  the  warrant  of  arrest ;  I  cannot  go  back  on 
that.  As  for  the  incarceration,  I  will  put  him  in  the 
Conciergerie." 

''Thank  you.  monsieur."  said  the  unhappy  Bourlac. 


316  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

With  the  words  he  fell  rigid  on  the  snow,  and 
rolled  into  one  of  the  hollows  round  the  trees  of  the 
boulevard. 

The  commissar}"  of  police  called  for  help,  and  Nepo- 
mucene  ran  up,  together  with  Madame  Vauthier.  The 
old  man  was  carried  to  his  room,  and  Madame  Vauthier 
begged  the  commissary  to  call  on  his  way  in  the  rue 
d'Enfer,  and  send  Doctor  Berton  as  soon  as  possible. 

"  What  is  the  matter  with  my  grandfather?"  asked 
poor  Auguste. 

'^  He  is  out  of  his  head.  You  see  what  it  is  to  steal," 
said  the  Vauthier. 

Auguste  made  a  movement  as  though  he  would  dash 
out  his  brains.     The  two  agents  caught  him. 

"  Come,  young  man,  be  calm,"  said  the  commissary 
of  police;  '^j^ou  have  done  wrong,  but  it  may  not  be 
irreparable  —  " 

"Monsieur,  will  3'ou  tell  that  woman  my  grand- 
father has  n't  had  anything  to  eat  for  twentj'-four 
hours?" 

"  Oh  !  the  poor  things  !  "  exclaimed  the  commissary 
under  his  breath. 

He  stopped  the  coach,  which  had  started,  and  said  a 
word  in  the  ear  of  one  of  his  agents,  who  got  out  and 
ran  to  Madame  Vauthier,  and  then  returned. 

When  Dr  Berton  arrived  he  declared  that  Monsieur 
Bernard  (he  knew  him  only  under  that  name)  had  a 


The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation.  317 

high  fever  of  great  intensity.  After  hearing  from 
Madame  Vauthier  all  the  events  which  had  brought  on 
this  crisis  (related  after  the  manner  of  such  women)  he 
informed  Monsieur  Alain  the  next  morning,  at  Saint- 
Jacques  du  Haut-PaSj  of  the  present  state  of  affairs ; 
on  which  Monsieur  Alain  despatched  a  note  in  pencil 
by  a  street  messenger  to  Monsieur  Joseph. 

Godefroid  had  given  Monsieur  Joseph,  on  his  return 
from  the  boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse  the  night  before, 
the  notes  confided  to  him  bj'  Auguste,  and  Monsieur 
Joseph  had  spent  part  of  the  night  in  reading  the  first 
volume  of  Baron  Bourlac's  work. 

The  next  morning  after  breakfast  Madame  de  la 
Chanterie  told  her  neoph3'te  that  he  should,  if  his  reso- 
lution still  held  good,  be  put  to  work  at  once.  Gode- 
froid, initiated  b}'  her  into  the  financial  secrets  of  the 
society,  worked  steadily  seven  or  eight  hours  a  day  for 
several  months,  under  the  inspection  of  Frederic  Mon- 
genod,  who  came  every  Sunday  to  examine  the  work,  and 
from  whom  he  received  much  praise  and  encouragement. 

"  You  are,"  he  said,  when  tlie  books  were  all  in  order 
and  the  accounts  audited,  ''  a  precious  acquisition  to 
the  saints  among  whom  you  live.  Two  or  three  hours 
a  day  will  now  suflSce  to  keep  the  current  accounts  in 
order,  and  3'ou  will  have  plenty  of  surplus  time  to  help 
the  work  in  other  wa^'s,  if  you  still  have  the  vocation 
vou  showed  for  it  six  months  ago." 


318  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

It  was  now  July,  1838.  During  the  time  that  had 
elapsed  since  his  opening  attempt  on  the  boulevard  du 
Mont-Parnasse,  Godefroid,  eager  to  prove  himself 
worthy  of  his  friends,  had  refrained  from  asking  any 
question  relating  to  Baron  Bourlac.  Not  hearing  a 
single  word  on  the  subject,  and  finding  no  record  of 
any  transaction  concerning  it  in  the  accounts,  he  re- 
garded the  silence  maintained  about  the  enemy  of 
Madame  de  la  Chanterie  and  his  family  either  as  a  test 
to  which  he  himself  was  subjected,  or  as  a  proof  that 
the  friends  of  the  noble  woman  had  in  some  way 
avenged  her. 

Some  two  months  after  he  had  left  Madame  Vauthier's 
lodgings  he  turned  his  steps  when  out  for  a  walk 
towards  the  boulevard  du  Mont-Parnasse,  where  he 
came  upon  the  widow  herself,  and  asked  for  news  of 
the  Bernard  familj'. 

^^  Just  as  if  I  knew  what  has  become  of  them  !  "  she 
replied.  "  Two  days  after  3'our  departure  —  for  it  was 
you,  slyboots,  who  got  the  affair  away  from  my  proprietor 
—  some  men  came  here  and  rid  me  of  that  arrogant  old 
fool  and  all  his  belongings.  Bless  me  !  if  they  did  n't 
move  everything  out  within  twenty-four  hours  ;  and  as 
close  as  wax  they  were  too ;  not  a  word  would  they 
say  to  me.  I  think  he  went  off  to  Algiers  with  his 
rogue  of  a  grandson  ;  for  Nepomucene,  who  had  a  fancy 
for  that  young  thief,  being  no  better  himself,  could  n't 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  319 

find  him  at  the  Conciergerie.  I  dare  sa}'  Nepomucene 
knows  where  he  is,  though,  for  he  too,  has  run  away. 
That 's  what  it  is  to  bring  up  foundlings !  that 's  how 
they  reward  30U  for  all  your  trouble,  leaving  you  in 
the  lurch !  I  have  n't  yet  been  able  to  get  a  man  in 
his  place,  and  as  the  quarter  is  looking  up  the  house 
is  full,  and  I  am  worked  to  death." 

Godefroid  would  never  have  known  more  about  Baron 
Bourlac  and  his  famih'  if  it  had  not  been  for  one  of  those 
chance  encounters  such  as  often  happen  in  Paris. 

In  the  month  of  September  he  was  walking  down  the 
great  avenue  of  the  Champs  Elysees,  thinking,  as  he 
passed  the  end  of  the  rue  Marbeuf,  of  Dr.  Ilalpersohn. 

"I  might,"  thought  he,  "  go  and  see  him  and  ask  if 
he  ever  cured  Bourlac's  daughter.  What  a  voice,  what 
immense  talents  she  had !  —  and  she  wanted  to  conse- 
crate herself  to  God  !  " 

When  he  reached  the  Rond-point  Godefroid  crossed 
it  quickl}',  on  account  of  the  many  carriages  that  were 
passing  rapidl}'.  As  he  reached  the  other  side  in  haste 
he  knocked  against  a  young  man  with  a  ladj'  on  his 
arm. 

"Take  care!"  said  the  young  man;  "are  you 
blind?" 

"Hey!  is  it  3'ou?"  cried  Godefroid,  recognizing 
Au2;uste  de  Mergi. 

Auguste  was  so  well-dressed,  and  looked  so  dandified 


320  The  Brotherliood  of  Consolation. 

and  handsome  and  so  proud  of  giving  his  arm  to  a 
pretty  woman,  that  if  it  had  not  been  for  the  3'outh's 
voice  and  the  memories  that  were  just  then  in  his  own 
mind  he  might  not  have  recognized  him. 

"  Oh  !  it  is  our  dear  Monsieur  Godefroid  !  "  said  the 
lady. 

Hearing  those  words  in  the  celestial  notes  of  Vanda's 
enchanting  voice,  Godefroid  stopped  short  on  the  spot 
where  he  stood. 

''Cured  !  "  he  exclaimed. 

'Tor  the  last  ten  daj's  he  has  allowed  me  to  walk 
out,"  she  replied. 

"Who?   Halpersohn?" 

"Yes,"  she  said.  "  Why  have  3'ou  not  been  to  see 
us?  Perhaps  it  was  well  3'ou  didn't;"  she  added; 
"  my  hair  came  off;  this  that  you  see  is  a  wig  ;  but  the 
doctor  assures  me  it  will  grow  again.  Oh  !  how  many 
things  we  have  to  tell  each  other !  Come  and  dine 
with  us.  Oh  !  your  accordion  !  oh  !  monsieur,"  —  she 
put  her  handkerchief  to  her  ej^es. 

"  I  shall  keep  it  all  my  life,"  she  went  on,  "  and  my 
son  will  preserve  it  as  a  relic  after  me.  Mj^  father  has 
searched  all  Paris  for  you.  And  he  is  also  in  search  of 
his  unknown  benefactors ;  he  will  grieve  himself  to 
death  if  you  do  not  help  him  to  discover  them.  Poor 
father  !  he  is  gnawed  by  a  melancholy  I  cannot  alwa3'S 
get  the  better  of." 


--4 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  321 

As  much  attracted  by  that  exquisite  voice,  now 
rescued  from  the  silence  of  the  grave,  as  by  a  burning 
curiosity,  Godefroid  offered  his  arm  to  the  hand  held 
out  to  him  by  the  Baronne  de  Mergi,  who  signed  to 
her  son  to  precede  them,  charging  him  with  a  commission 
w^hich  he  seemed  to  understand. 

'•'•  I  shall  not  take  3'ou  far,"  she  said  ;  "  we  live  in  the 

Allee   d'Antin,   in    a   pretty  little  house    built   in   the 

English  fashion.     We  occupy  it  alone  ;  each  of  us  has 

a  floor.     Oh  !  we  are  so  comfortable.     My  father  thinks 

that  you   had    a    great   deal    to    do   with    our  good 
fortune." 

"  I?  " 

"Yes;  did  you  know  that  on  a  recommendation 
made  b}-  the  minister  of  public  instruction  a  chair  of- 
international  law  has  been  created  for  papa  at  the 
Sorbonne?  He  begins  his  first  course  next  Novem- 
ber. The  great  work  on  which  he  has  been  engaged 
so  long  will  be  published  this  month  by  the  firm  of 
Cavalier  and  Co.,  who  agree  to  share  the  profits  with 
my  father ;  they  have  already  paid  him  on  account 
thirty  thousand  francs.  M}^  father  bought  our  house 
with  that  monej'.  The  minister  of  justice  has  awarded 
me  a  pension  of  twelve  hundred  francs  as  the  daughter 
of  a  former  judge ;  my  father  has  his  retiring  pension 
of  three  thousand,  and  his  professorship  will  give  him 
five  thousand  more.     We  are  so  economical  that  we  are 

21 


322  The  Brotherhood  of  Coyisolation. 

almost  rich.  My  clear  Auguste  will  begin  his  law 
studies  in  two  months ;  but  be  is  alreacl}'  employed 
in  the  office  of  the  attornej'-general,  and  is  earning 
twelve  hundred  francs  a  3'ear.  Ah !  Monsieur  Gode- 
froid,  promise  me  you  will  never  speak  of  that  unhapp}' 
affair  of  ni}'  poor  Auguste.  As  for  me,  I  bless  him 
ever}'  da}'  for  that  action,  though  his  grandfather  has 
not  3'et  forgiven  him.  Yes,  his  mother  blesses  him, 
Halpersohn  adores  him,  but  m}"  father  is  implacable  !  " 

''  What  affair?  "  asked  Godefroid. 

''Ah!  I  recognize  your  generosit}',"  cried  Vanda. 
"What  a  heart  you  have!  Your  mother  must  be 
proud  of  3'ou." 

She  stopped  as  if  a  pain  had  struck  her  heart. 

"  I  swear  to  you  that  I  know  nothing  of  the  affair  of 
which  you  speak,"  said  Godefroid. 

"Is  it  possible  that  you  really  did  not  know  it?" 
said  Vanda.  And  she  related  na'ivel}^,  in  terms  of 
admiration  for  her  son,  the  story  of  the  loan  that  he 
had  secured  from  the  doctor. 

"If  we  may  not  speak  of  it  before  Baron  Bourlac," 
said  Godefroid,  "  tell  me  now  how  your  son  got  out  of 
his  trouble." 

"  Well,"  said  Vanda,  "  I  told  you,  I  think,  that  he  is 
now  employed  by  the  attorney-general,  who  shows  him 
the  greatest  kindness.  Auguste  was  only  forty-eight 
hours  in  the  Conciergerie,  where  he   was   put  into  the 


The  BrotherJiood  of  Consolation.  323 

governor's  house.  The  good  doctor,  who  did  not 
receive  a  noble  letter  the  boy  wrote  him  till  late  at 
night,  withdrew  his  complaint ;  and,  through  the 
influence  of  a  former  judge  of  the  Royal  Courts,  whom 
ni}'  father  has  never  been  able  to  meet,  the  attorne}'- 
general  was  induced  to  annul  the  proceedings  in  the 
court.  There  is  no  trace  left  of  the  affair  except  in 
my  heart  and  ni}'  son's  conscience,  and  alas !  in  his 
grandfather's  mind.  From  that  daj^  he  has  treated 
Auguste  as  almost  a  stranger.  Onh'  3'esterday  Halper- 
sohn  begged  him  to  forgive  the  bo}' ;  but  ni}'  fnther, 
who  never  before  refused  me  anything  —  me,  whom 
he  loves  so  well !  —  replied :  '  You  are  the  person 
robbed ;  you  can,  and  3'ou  ought  to  forgive ;  but  I 
am  responsible  for  the  thief.  When  I  was  attornej'- 
general  I  never  pardoned.'  '  You  '11  kill  your  daughter,' 
said  Halpersohn.  My  father  made  no  reply  and  turned 
away." 

"  But  who  helped  3'OU  in  all  this?  " 

"  A  gentleman,  w^hom  we  think  is  emploj'ed  to  do  the 
queen's  benefits." 

"What  is  he  like?" 

*' Well,  he  is  of  medium  height;  rather  stout,  but 
active ;  with  a  kindl}',  genial  face.  It  was  he  who 
found  m}'  father  ill  of  fever  in  the  house  where  you 
knew  us  and  had  him  brought  to  that  in  which  we  now 
live.     And  just  fanc}',  as  soon  as  my  father  recovered 


324  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

I  was  installed  there,  too,  in  my  very  own  room,  just 
as  if  I  had  never  left  it.  Halpersohn,  whom  the  gentle- 
man captivated,  I  am  sure  I  don't  know  how,  then  told 
me  all  the  sufferings  my  father  had  endured.  Ah,  when 
I  think  of  it !  m}'  father  and  my  son  often  without 
bread  to  eat,  and  when  with  me  pretending  to  be  rich  ! 
even  the  diamonds  in  the  snuff-box  sold  !  Oh,  Monsieur 
Godefroid  !  those  two  beings  are  mart3'rs.  And  so, 
what  can  I  sa}"  to  my  father?  between  him  and  my  son 
I  can  take  no  part ;  I  can  onl}'  make  return  to  them 
in  kind  b}'  suffering  with  them,  as  they  once  suffered 
with  me." 

''  And  3'ou  sa}'  3'ou  think  that  gentleman  came  from 
the  queen  ?  " 

"Oh!  I  am  sure  joxx  know  him,  I  see  it  in  your 
face,"  cried  Vanda,  now  at  the  door  of  the  house. 

She  seized  Godefroid  by  the  hand  with  the  vigor  of 
a  nervous  woman  and  dragged  him  into  a  salon,  the 
door  of  which  stood  open. 

"  Papa  !  "  she  cried,  "  here  is  Monsieur  Godefroid  ! 
and  I  am  certain  he  knows  our  benefactors." 

Baron  Bourlac,  whom  Godefroid  now  saw  dressed  in 
a  manner  suitable  for  a  man  of  his  rank  and  position, 
rose  and  came  forward,  holding  out  his  hand  to 
Godefroid,  sa3'ing  as  he  did  so :  — 

"  I  was  sure  of  it." 

Godefroid  made  a  gesture  denj'ing  that  he  shared  in 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation,  325 

this  noble  vengeance,  but  the  former  attorney-general 
gave  him  no  chance  to  speak. 

''Ah!  monsieur,"  he  said,  continuing,  "Providence 
could  not  be  more  powerful,  love  more  ingenious, 
motherhood  more  clear-sighted  than  3'our  friends  have 
been  for  us.  I  bless  the  chance  that  has  brought  you 
here  to-day;  for  Monsieur  Joseph  has  disappeared  for- 
ever ;  he  has  evaded  all  the  traps  1  set  to  discover  his 
true  name  and  residence.  Here,  read  his  last  letter. 
But  perhaps  3'ou  already  know  it." 

Godefroid  read  as  follows  :  — 

Monsieur  le  Baron  Bourlac,  —  The  sums  which  we 
have  spent  for  you,  under  the  orders  of  a  charitable  lady, 
amount  to  fifteen  thousand  francs.  Take  note  of  this,  so 
that  you  may  return  that  sum  either  yourself,  or  through  your 
descendants,  whenever  the  prosperity  of  your  family  will 
admit  of  it,  —  for  that  money  is  the  money  of  the  poor. 
When  you  or  your  family  are  able  to  make  this  restitution, 
pay  the  sum  you  owe  into  the  hands  of  Messrs.  Mongenod 
and  Company,  bankers. 

May  God  forgive  you. 

Five  crosses  formed  the  mysterious  signature  of  this 
letter,  which  Godefroid  returned  to  the  baron. 

"  The  five  crosses  are  there,"  he  said  as  if  to 
himself. 

"  Ah  !  monsieur,"  said  the  old  man  ;  "  you  do  know 
all ;  yon  were  sent  to  me  b}'  that  mysterious  lad^'  —  tell 
me  her  name  !  " 


326  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

' '  Her  name  !  "  exclaimed  Godefroid  ;  ' "  her  name  ! 
Unhappy  man !  you  must  not  ask  it ;  never  seek  to 
find  it  out.  Ah !  madame,"  he  cried,  taking  Madame 
de  Mergi's  trembUng  hand ;  "  tell  your  father,  if  he 
values  his  peace  of  mind,  to  remain  in  his  ignorance  and 
make  no  effort  to  discover  the  truth." 

"  No,  tell  it !  "  said  Vanda. 

"  Well,  then,  she  who  saved  your  daughter,"  said 
Godefroid,  looking  at  the  old  man,  "  who  returns  her 
to  you  young  and  beautiful  and  fresh  and  happy,  who 
rescued  her  from  her  coffin,  she  who  saved  3'our  grand- 
son from  disgrace,  and  has  given  3'ou  an  old  age  of 
peace  and  honor  —  "  He  stopped  short  —  "•  is  a  woman 
whom  you  sent  innocent  to  a  prison  for  twenty  3-ears ; 
to  whom,  as  a  magistrate,  you  did  the  foulest  wrong ; 
whose  sanctit}'  30U  insulted  ;  whose  beautiful  daughter 
3'ou  tore  from  her  arms  and  condemned  to  the  cruellest 
of  all  deaths,  for  she  died  on  the  guillotine." 

Godefroid,  seeing  that  Vanda  had  fallen  back  half 
fainting  on  her  chair,  rushed  into  the  corridor  and  from 
there  into  the  street,  running  at  full  speed. 

"  If  3'ou  want  30ur  pardon/'  said  Baron  Bourlac  to 
his  grandson,  "  follow  that  man  and  find  out  where  he 
lives." 

Auguste  was  off  like  an  arrow. 

The  next  morning  at  eight  o'clock,  Baron  Bourlac 
knocked  at  the  old  3'ellow  door  in  the  rue  Chanoinesse, 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  327 

and  asked  for  Madame  de  la  Chanterie.  The  portress 
showed  him  the  poitico.  Happilj'  it  was  the  breakfast 
hour.  Godefroid  saw  the  baron,  through  one  of  the 
casements  on  the  staircase,  crossing  the  court-3'ard ; 
he  had  just  time  to  get  down  into  the  salon  where  the 
friends  were  all  assembled  and  to  cry  out :  — 

"  Baron  Bourlac  is  here  !  " 

Madame  de  la  Chanterie,  hearing  the  name,  rose ; 
supported  by  the  Abb^  de  V^ze  she  went  to  her  room. 

"  You  shall  not  come  in,  tool  of  Satan !  "  cried 
Manon,  recognizing  their  former  prosecutor  and  pre- 
venting his  entrance  through  the  door  of  the  salon. 
"  Have  you  come  to  kill  Madame?" 

"  Manon,  let  the  gentleman  come  in,"  said  Monsieur 
Alain. 

Manon  sat  down  on  a  chair  as  if  both  her  less  had 
given  waj'  at  once. 

"  Monsieur,"  said  the  baron  in  an  agitated  voice, 
recognizing  Monsieur  Joseph  and  Godefroid,  and  bow- 
ing to  Monsieur  Nicolas,  "•  mercy  gives  rights  to  those 
it  benefits." 

'^  You  owe  us  nothing,  monsieur ;"  said  the  good  old 
Alain ;  "  you  owe  everything  to  God." 

"  You  are  saints,  and  you  have  the  calmness  of 
saints  ;  "  said  the  former  magistrate  ;  "  you  will  there- 
fore listen  to  me.  I  know  that  the  vast  benefits  I  have 
received  durini^  the  last  eighteen  months  come  from  the 


328  The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 

hand  of  a  person  whom  I  grievousl}'  injured  in  doing 
my  duty.  It  was  fifteen  3-ears  before  I  was  convinced 
of  her  innocence ;  and  that  case  is  the  onh'  one,  gentle- 
men, for  which  I  feel  any  remorse  as  to  the  exercise  of 
my  functions.  Listen  to  me  !  I  have  but  a  short  time 
to  live,  but  I  shall  lose  even  that  poor  remnant  of  a 
life,  still  so  important  to  my  children  whom  Madame 
de  la  Chanterie  has  saved,  unless  she  will  also  grant 
me  her  pardon.  Yes,  I  will  stay  there  on  my  knees  on 
the  pavement  of  Notre-Dame  until  she  sa^s  to  me  that 
word.  I,  who  cannot  weep,  whom  the  tortures  of  my 
child  have  dried  like  stubble,  I  shall  find  tears  within 
me  to  move  her  —  " 

The  door  of  Madame  de  la  Chanterie's  room  opened ; 
the  Abbe  de  Veze  glided  in  like  a  shadow  and  said  to 
Monsieur  Joseph :  — 

"  That  voice  is  torturing  Madame." 

*'  Ah  !  she  is  there  !  "  exclaimed  the  baron. 

He  fell  on  his  knees  and  burst  into  tears,  crying  out 
in  a  heart-rending  voice:  "In  the  name  of  Jesus 
dying  on  the  cross,  forgive,  forgive  me,  for  mj'  daughter 
has  suffered  a  thousand  deaths  !  " 

The  old  man  fell  forward  on  the  floor  so  prone  that 
the  agitated  spectators  thought  him  dead.  At  that 
instant  Madame  de  la  Chanterie  appeared  like  a  spectre 
at  the  door  of  her  room,  against  the  frame  of  which  she 
supported  herself. 


The  Brotherhood  of  Consolation.  329 

"  In  the  name  of  Louis  XVI.  and  Marie- Antoinette 
whom  I  see  on  their  scaffold,  in  the  name  of  Madame 
Elisabeth,  in  the  name  of  my  daughter  and  of  3'ours, 
and  for  Jesus'  sake,  I  forgive  you." 

Hearing  those  words  the  old  man  raised  his  head. 
"  It  is  the  vengeance  of  the  angels !  "  he  said. 

Monsieur  Joseph  and  Monsieur  Nicolas  raised  him 
and  led  him  into  the  courtyard  ;  Godefroid  went  to 
fetch  a  carriage,  and  when  the}"  put  the  old  man  into  it 
Monsieur  Nicolas  said  to  him  gravely  :  — 

"  Do  not  return  here,  monsieur ;  the  power  of  God  is 
infinite,  but  human  nature  has  its  limits." 

On  that  day  Godefroid  was  admitted  to  the  order  of 
the  Brotherhood  of  Consolation. 


THE    END. 


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